Batley and Spen by-election: Nail-biter for Labour as count gets under way

Counting is under way in the Batley and Spen by-election, with Labour desperate not to lose a seat it has held since 1997 to the Conservatives.

Sixteen candidates are running in the West Yorkshire constituency, the best known of them being former Labour and Respect MP George Galloway.

The campaign has been marred by acrimony, personal abuse and allegations of dirty tricks.

The by-election result is expected to come at around 05:00 BST on Friday.

Turnout was 47.6%, with some 37,786 verified ballots cast out of a total electorate of 79,373, Kirklees Council said.

In another by-election in May the Conservatives took Hartlepool, a once rock-solid Labour seat, with a majority of almost 7,000 votes.

This came in addition to the loss by Labour of more than 300 councillors in England's local elections.

The Batley and Spen contest is seen as an important test for leader Sir Keir Starmer, who, it has been reported, could face a challenge from his deputy Angela Rayner if the party loses another northern English constituency to the Tories.

Sir Keir's team insists he will fight the next general election and friends of Ms Rayner say she is not planning to oppose her boss.

The Batley and Spen vote was called after the previous MP, former Coronation Street actress Tracy Brabin, became West Yorkshire's first elected mayor in May.

She first won the seat in a by-election following the murder of previous MP Jo Cox by a far-right extremist in Birstall, part of the constituency, in 2016.

Ms Cox's sister, Kim Leadbeater, is Labour's candidate this time, but she faces a strong challenge from Conservative Ryan Stephenson.

In a statement after the polls closed, she said there had been "many highs" to the election campaign but also "some unacceptable lows".

"The acts of intimidation and violence by some who have come here with the sole aim of sowing division have been deeply upsetting to witness," she said.

"Whatever the result... the first priorities of the new MP must be to bring our community together and start working for local people in every part of the constituency."

Labour's majority at the 2019 general election was 3,525 - slightly smaller than in Hartlepool.

But the by-election result in Batley and Spen is expected to be close, although the involvement of Mr Galloway, running for the Workers Party, has added to the sense of uncertainty.

The contest has at times become very bitter, with Labour activists claiming earlier this week that they had been egged, kicked and verbally assaulted while out campaigning.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson described such behaviour as "absolutely appalling".

And on Wednesday Mr Galloway threatened legal action against Kirklees Council, which is overseeing the by-election, after it took down his posters.

This happened after officials said the text identifying the details of his political party was too small.

Mr Galloway, who pulled off a by-election upset in 2012 when he took Bradford West from Labour for his Respect Party, said earlier this week: "I'm standing against Keir Starmer. If Keir Starmer loses this by-election, it's curtains for Keir Starmer."

The Conservatives have fought a relatively low-key campaign but Mr Stephenson has said he is "squarely focused on talking to voters about the issues that matter here".

"George Galloway and Keir Starmer's candidate have been fighting like cats in a sack over internal Labour Party issues," he told Yorkshire Live, "and that's a matter for them."

The candidates were (in alphabetical order):