UKIP gains first elected MP with Clacton win - BBC News BBC News UKIP gains first elected MP with Clacton win 10 October 2014 From the section UK Politics comments Read more about sharing. Close share panel Media captionFormer Tory MP Douglas Carswell becomes the first UKIP candidate to be elected to the House of Commons The UK Independence Party has gained its first elected MP, with Douglas Carswell taking the seat of Clacton by 12,404 votes. Mr Carswell, who defected from the Conservatives, knocked his old party - which enjoyed a 12,068 majority at the 2010 election - into second place. UKIP leader Nigel Farage said he had "shaken up British politics". In the night's other by-election, Labour held on to Heywood and Middleton but UKIP slashed its majority to 617. Mr Farage told BBC Breakfast UKIP could hold the balance of power after next year's general election. He said UKIP's second place in Heywood and Middleton was "even more significant" than its win in Clacton, saying the party was now the main opposition to Labour in northern cities. "Something big is happening here.

People want change, they have had enough of career politicians in three parties." Mr Farage said he expected more Conservative MPs to join UKIP following the defection of Mr Carswell and Mark Reckless, who has triggered a by-election in Rochester and Strood, Kent. "I think it would be very surprising if more people did not come across", he said, saying he had also spoken to Labour MPs "frustrated that they are not able to change things in British politics". Conservative Party Chairman Grant Shapps told BBC Breakfast the result in Clacton was a "wake-up call" saying that while UKIP were a threat to all the Westminster parties, they "cost Conservatives seats", so put Labour leader Ed Miliband "one step closer to Downing Street". Media captionEd Miliband said the Tories lost in "their own backyard" in the Clacton by-election Prime Minister David Cameron said : "If you see a big UKIP vote you end up with Ed Miliband as prime minister, Ed Balls as chancellor, Labour in power." BBC political editor Nick Robinson said the Conservative strategy of saying a UKIP vote helped Labour was "the only way they think they can get those voters back".

The UKIP vote could still "slump back" at the general election, or it could "carry on breaking every prediction and really make a breakthrough", he added. 'Humility, modesty' Speaking in Heywood, where he congratulated winning candidate Liz McInnes, Mr Miliband said UKIP voters did not think political parties listened to them or that the country represented them. He said Labour had changed and realised it was "not prejudiced" to worry about immigration, but said he did not think UKIP could "represent the interests of working people". The next election would be a fight against "disillusionment and despair", he predicted. Speaking on a walkabout with Mr Farage in Clacton on Friday morning, Mr Carswell, who gained 21,113 votes - 60% of the total - said he did not want to be UKIP leader. and said his old party had "smeared" Mr Reckless since his defection. In his acceptance speech he told UKIP supporters there was "nothing that we cannot achieve". Addressing the people of his constituency, he said: "I resigned from parliament to face this election because I answer first, foremost and last to you.

You are my boss. I will not let you down. "To my new party I offer these thoughts: humility when we win, modesty when we are proved right. If we speak with passion, let it always be tempered by compassion." Image copyright AP Image caption Mr Carswell overturned a Conservative majority in Clacton Image copyright PA Image caption Liz McInnes retained Heywood and Middleton for Labour but with a reduced majority Image copyright Getty Images Image caption UKIP leader Nigel Farage said Mr Carswell was "a brave and honourable man" He also addressed the party's prospects on a wider front, saying "we must be a party for all Britain and all Britons: first and second generation as much as every other". "Our strength must lie in our breadth. If we stay true to that there is nothing that we cannot achieve. Nothing we cannot achieve in Essex and East Anglia, in England and the whole country beyond." Media captionLiz McInnes' acceptance speech Media captionConservative Party Chairman Grant Shapps: "UKIP's victory is a wake-up call" Mr Carswell condemned the other Westminster parties for operating "cosy cartel politics".

Michael Dugher, Labour's vice-chairman, said his party would continue to "expose UKIP for what they are". "We will take them on in our areas", he said. Mr Dugher said UKIP had inflicted a "humiliating defeat for David Cameron" in Clacton. But Labour MP and former Pensions Minister Frank Field MP said: "If last night's vote heralds the start of UKIP's serious assault into Labour's neglected core vote, all bets are off for safer, let alone marginal seats at the next election." Analysis by Chris Mason, BBC political correspondent Image copyright Getty Images If Clacton provided the headline, Heywood and Middleton provided the surprise: UKIP nearly won there too. Little wonder party leader Nigel Farage was on the champagne in the pub afterwards. The faces of Tory activists in Clacton said it all. Imagine how you'd feel if you had to listen to the victory speech of a former colleague who walked out on you and then gave you a walloping to boot.

Read more from Chris Mr Carswell is the first MP to be elected under their banner although it did have one MP for two years after 2008 after another Tory MP, Bob Spink, defected to them. Conservative candidate Giles Watling, one of the stars of the old BBC sitcom Bread, said: "I intend to stand here next May at the general election when this country will face a clear choice of who they want to be the leader - David Cameron or Ed Miliband." Labour 'in trouble' It had also looked at one point that UKIP could have been celebrating a double success with the result in the Greater Manchester constituency of Heywood and Middleton - held comfortably by Labour since its creation in 1983 - deemed close enough to warrant a "bundle check" of votes. But in the end, Labour's Liz McInnes got 11,633 votes - 41% - with UKIP's John Bickley gaining 11,016 - 39%.

Media captionUKIP leader Nigel Farage: "The whole of British politics has been shaken up" Media captionProf John Curtice says Douglas Carswell's Clacton win is the largest increase in vote by any party in any UK by-election Labour's newest MP, Ms McInnes, told the BBC: "I'm going to work damn hard in this constituency. People here will have an MP who is going to fight for their interests." But Mr Bickley said: "Labour are in big trouble. This should have been a safe seat. They have thrown everything at it and they have only just scraped home." 'Very different election' Elections expert Professor John Curtice of Strathclyde University said: "We have to accept that the battle in England for May 2015 is not going to be a battle between simply three parties; it's going to be a battle between at least four parties. Media captionA look back at previous election "first wins" "And bear in mind that also, according to some of the opinion polls, the Greens are running at 5% or 6% as well.

We are looking at a very different kind of electoral competition in England from anything we have previously experienced in post-war elections." The Heywood and Middleton contest was prompted by the death of long-serving Labour MP Jim Dobbin last month. His majority at the last general election was 5,971.

Clacton by-election: result in full Douglas Carswell (UKIP) 21,113 (59.75%) Giles Watling (Con) 8,709 (24.64%) Tim Young (Lab) 3,957 (11.20%) Chris Southall (Green) 688 (1.95%) Andy Graham (LD) 483 (1.37%) Bruce Sizer (Ind) 205 (0.58%) Howling Laud Hope (Loony) 127 (0.36%) Charlotte Rose (Ind) 56 (0.16%) Turnout was 51% Heywood and Middleton by-election: result in full Liz McInnes (Lab) 11,633 (40.86%) John Bickley (UKIP) 11,016 (38.69%) Iain Gartside (Con) 3,496 (12.28%) Anthony Smith (LD) 1,457 (5.12%) Abi Jackson (Green) 870 (3

.06%) Turnout was 36% Douglas Carswell could become first Ukip MP, poll claims | Politics | The Guardian Douglas Carswell Douglas Carswell could become first Ukip MP, poll claims Politician who defected from the Tories is 32 points ahead of his former party in Clacton byelection, says survey by Lord Ashcroft Tory defector Douglas Carswell, right, could be a Ukip MP soon, according to a poll giving him a byelection lead.

Photograph: Toby Melville/Reuters Tuesday 2 September 2014 13.42 EDT First published on Tuesday 2 September 2014 13.42 EDT Close This article is 2 years old Ukip could soon have its first elected MP after a poll showed former Conservative Douglas Carswell has a huge lead in the Clacton-on-Sea byelection. The survey by Lord Ashcroft, a Conservative peer and former donor, found Ukip has a 32 point lead on the Tories in the Essex constituency. It follows a Survation poll for the Mail on Sunday that gave Nigel Farage's party a 44-point lead. Carswell, a staunch Eurosceptic, resigned as a Tory MP and defected to Ukip last week, causing a headache for David Cameron in the runup to the next general election. A byelection has been called for 9 October, the prime minister's 48th birthday. Ashcroft's poll, published on the ConservativeHome website, found Ukip had 56% support, while the Tories were on 24% and Labour on 16%. The Liberal Democrats and others were on 2% each.

Almost six in 10 of those who voted Conservative at the last general election said they would switch to Ukip, as did 45% of 2010 Labour voters. More than two-thirds of those planning to vote Ukip said a large part of their decision was that Carswell was "the best candidate locally". In previous polls, more popular reasons for voting Ukip tended to be "sending a message that I'm unhappy with the party I usually support" or "as a general protest that I'm unhappy with all the parties at the moment". The view that Ukip "have the best policies on particular issues I care about" was the biggest explanation, cited by 81% of the party's voters. The Conservatives have not yet chosen a candidate for the byelection, but Boris Johnson, the London mayor, has ruled himself out. A choice is unlikely for another 10 days but there has been speculation the person could be picked from a shortlist by "open primary" – a voting system that allows anyone in the consituency to have a say, not just party members. Conservative sources said this would be a decision for the local association. Carswell's defection has caused fears that other Tory MPs could follow suit.

Others may wait until shortly before the election to avoid a byelection. Ukip has previously claimed it was in contact with eight Tory MPs. Amid fears about Ukip stealing their support, a number of Conservative backbenchers are thinking about declaring their support for Britain leaving the EU in their local manifestos. Cameron is arguing that the UK should stay in if it can get concessions from Brussels.

Party leader Natalie Bennett will argue minimum wage of £6.31 should be immediately raised to living wage level Published: 4 Sep 2014 Yes, they have jobs … but the five people featured here are typical of millions who have no security, no holiday or sick pay, limited hours, and no dignity at work, writes Yvonne Roberts Published: 30 Aug 2014 Peter Nunn retweeted messages threatening to sexually assault MP after she backed Jane Austen banknote campaign Published: 2 Sep 2014 Conservative minister and wine merchant once described as the 'tonic to Thatcher's gin' Published: 2 Sep 2014 'Emotional' Farage Watches First Ukip MP Douglas Carswell Sworn In To Parliament | The Huffington Post 'Emotional' Farage Watches First Ukip MP Douglas Carswell Sworn In To Parliament 13/10/2014 16:52 | Updated 13 October 2014 PA/Huffington Post UK Nigel Farage has hailed an "emotional" moment for Ukip as he watched its first elected MP introduced to Parliament.

The party leader was in the Commons for the first time in more than 30 years to see Douglas Carswell re-take his seat after claiming victory in the Clacton by-election . Mr Carswell, who triggered the contest after defecting from the Tories , was shepherded into the chamber by former colleagues Zac Goldsmith and Sir Peter Tapsell. Arriving at Westminster, Mr Farage said he had not been in the Commons since he was 17 - although he has been to the Lords. Asked if it felt like an emotional moment for the party, he said: "It does. I think it is a moment. I am here to represent Ukip and the millions of people who we represent." As an MEP, Mr Farage does not have automatic access to the parliamentary estate. The House authorities indicated Ukip would have needed to apply for tickets to sit in the public gallery. Before being sworn in, Mr Carswell told journalists he was "delighted" that Mr Farage would be there. Mr Carswell said his victory in Clacton with a 12,000 majority showed "change is coming". "People are worn down by a three-party system that is not on their side," he said.

The returning MP said he felt "reinvigorated" and would immediately be adding his name to amendments tabled by Mr Goldsmith aiming to toughen coalition proposals allowing voters to recall MPs. "I am going to come here and try and do the things that I promised." Mr Carswell said he had been "taken aback" by the number of "friendly messages" he has received from Tories. He also disclosed that chief whip Michael Gove telephoned him to offer congratulations after he won. A by-election in the Rochester and Strood seat of Mark Reckless, who has also defected from the Tories to Ukip , is expected to be held next month. Asked if he believed he would be back to watch Mr Reckless go through the same ceremony, Mr Farage said: "I jolly well hope so." Although Bob Spink briefly represented Ukip in the Commons after switching sides, Mr Carswell is the first MP elected under the party's banner. It narrowly missed out on a shock second seat last Thursday when Labour candidate Liz McInnes - who was also sworn in as member for Heywood and Middleton today - squeezed home by only around 600 votes.

Ukip has had a handful of peers, and currently boasts 24 MEPs after topping Euro elections in May. Earlier, David Cameron attempted to wrest back the initiative in the wake of the Clacton result by again warning that a vote for Ukip made an EU referendum less likely. Speaking on a visit to Portsmouth, he said: "If you vote Labour or Liberal or Ukip, you are more likely to end up with Ed Miliband in Downing Street and Ed Balls in the Treasury doing the opposite. The most important thing is if they vote Conservative, they will get the things they want - the continuation of economic growth, more jobs, cutting people's taxes and crucially a referendum, an in-out referendum on Europe. If you vote Ukip, the chances are you will get a Labour government that won't give you action on immigration, won't give you an in-out referendum and will continue to wreck our economy as they did last time." Carl Court via Getty Images UK Independence Party (UKIP) leader Nigel Farage arrives at Parliament on October 13, 2014 in London, England. Andrew Matthews/PA Wire Tory defector Douglas Carswell arrives at the Houses of Parliament in Westminster as Ukip's first directly-elected MP.

Andrew Matthews/PA Wire Tory defector Douglas Carswell arrives at the Houses of Parliament in Westminster as Ukip's first directly-elected MP. Andrew Matthews/PA Wire Tory defector Douglas Carswell arrives at the Houses of Parliament in Westminster as Ukip's first directly-elected MP. PA/PA Wire Tory defector Douglas Carswell shakes the hand of Speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow, in the House of Commons in Westminster, as Ukip's first directly-elected MP. PA/PA Wire Tory defector Douglas Carswell shakes the hand of Speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow, in the House of Commons in Westminster, as Ukip's first directly-elected MP. SEE ALSO: Douglas Carswell wins seat and becomes first ever Ukip MP - Telegraph • Ed Miliband doesn't get Northern voters I'm wrapping up our live coverage of the results and reaction to the Clacton and Heywood and Middleton by-elections. Thanks for joining us and scroll down to catch up with the drama of this big day for the UK Independence Party. Thank you and good evening.

Latest 16.15 Owen Paterson, the recently sacked Environment Secretary, says his party provide "genuine, Conservative solutions"to the "genuine worries" instead of "abuse them" &amp;lt;noframe&amp;gt;Twitter: Owen Paterson MP - We must understand that UKIP voters have genuine worries. Do not abuse them. Present genuine, Conservative solutions respectfully.&amp;lt;/noframe&amp;gt; Related Articles Agree English home rule within weeks or vote against it, Hague tells Miliband 12 Oct 2014 &amp;lt;noframe&amp;gt;Twitter: Owen Paterson MP - UKIP can identify problems but a Conservative government can deliver solutions. Robust policies can win back the 3.4million lost since 1992.&amp;lt;/noframe&amp;gt; 16.10: 'New Labour bigwigs insisted voters “had nowhere else to go”. Now they're finding SNP, Greens and Ukip' Diane Abbot writes on The Guardian that shadow cabinet members have been saying that that Ukip will "stampede" the party into moving right on race, immigration and welfare.

The aienation of voters, she says, goes back to Tony Blair's New Labour when party 'big wigs' dismissed any concerns of disaffected supporters. She said: "Voices on these issues have been raised within the Labour party for some time, many of them from within the shadow cabinet. For them, these byelections present a glittering opportunity to pressure a reluctant Ed Miliband into a set of “Ukip lite” policies on race, migration etc. "The proponents of a rightward shift on immigration do say one thing that I agree with. It is indeed true that the working class in Labour areas is increasingly alienated from the Labour party. "But what the right forgets to mention is that this process began under their hero, Tony Blair. I was a member of the national executive in the 1990s era of New Labour supremacy. "Whenever you mentioned core Labour voters you were dismissed. New Labour bigwigs insisted that those voters “had nowhere else to go”.

Well now they are finding somewhere else to go: the SNP in Scotland, the Greens and Ukip." 15.57: I want my daughter to grow up in a world where people can talk openly about immigration, Douglas Carswell says Douglas Carswell on the campaign trail this week Matthew Holehouse, Political Correspondent, is with Mr Carswell in Clacton The new Ukip MP was asked why he made the comments about first generation Britons in his speech, he insisted he was not lecturing his party about its record on race. But he said: "I want my daughter to grow up in a country where the anxieties people have have been addressed and not suppressed. And I'm fearful that if we suppress people's anxieties about identity, that will throw up problems for us as a society." "One of the biggest challenges we face as a country is how do you create a sense of identity in a world where you've got huge mobility of people, where people can talk to people in other countries on skype. A generation ago most people had friends lived and worked in their parish.

We now live in a world where granny can skype grandkids on a sunday." 15.17: Earlier Jack Straw said that people think Ed Miliband has panda eyes and weird lips What do you think? Tell me on Twitter 15.10: They are going to throw everything they can at me, Mark Reckless says Mark Reckless enjoying an orange juice outside The Crown pub, Matthew Lloyd/Getty Images The former Conservative MP fighting for his political life in Rochester and Strood in a few weeks time says that 3,500 people "still voted Conservative and let Labour in". “It won’t be a dirty campaign on my side; I am focusing on the local issues. I will be fighting a positive campaign.

I would encourage other parties to do that too because I think that is what people want to see in public life and that is certainly what I will be trying to do in my campaign." He argued that if Ukip is able to win in Rochester and Strood by the same margin as they did in Clacton the party will "be winning across the country and really sort of breaking open that cosy cartel at Westminster." 14.43: It's been years since Nigel Farage but Labour and the Tories still don't 'get it', Robert Colvile says Nigel Farage unveils new Labour attack poster, Getty Images They still don’t get it. Ever since Ukip began its stratospheric rise, the Tories and Labour have responded by treating it as a one-issue party. They saw their working-class voters being peeled away, and decided that they knew how to win them back: with a nice bit of red meat. They were at it again today. “Only the Conservatives will give you that referendum on Europe,” insisted Grant Shapps, the Tory chairman, even as true-blue Clacton turned brilliant purple.

“We have got to be stronger about our message on immigration,” said Jack Straw, as Labour’s hegemony in Heywood & Middleton came within a few hundred votes of coming to an end. Keep reading 14.39: Is Tory deputy chief whip Greg Hands regretting saying that no more Tory MPs will defect? Christopher Hope, Senior Political Correspondent, reports: The bookies do not appear so certain. William Hill is offering odds of just 6/4 that two or more current MPs will defect to the Party between now and the General Election. Graham Sharpe, a spokesman, says: "With UKIP hot favourites at 1/ 4 to acquire a second MP as a result of the Rochester by election any MPs considering whether to jump ship may well decide that there is unlikely to be a better time to do so." Ukip is also just 1/4 to double their total of MPs by winning the Rochester and Strood by-election (the Tories are 11/4; Labour 16/1; Lib Dems 200/1).

14.32: Clacton is a "warning shot across the bow of the Conservative party" senior Tory MP warns Sir Edward Leigh has launched a stinging attack on David Cameron and the Conservative party arguing that his party's policies have alienated traditonal voters and that anti-Europeans believe the planned EU renogation "will be a sham". After attacks on the party's record on tax, on gay marriage, on failed and wasteful green policies and on the armed forces he finishes: "Above all, let’s not insult the heartfelt Conservatives who were trying to give us a lesson in Clacton. Let’s convince them that the lesson is learned." 14.09: I know people say Ed Miliband's "got panda eyes and strange lips" but I could say the same thing about Mr Clegg or Mr Cameron, Jack Straw says Who are you calling Ed Miliband? pic: Imaginechina/REX The former Labour Home Secretary said Mr Miliband was a good leader despite his own inital concerns. He also addressed criticisms of Mr Miliband's looks. He said: “I know people say he’s got panda eyes and strange lips.

Well, I could make the same remarks in different ways about Mr Clegg or Mr Cameron. I think what matters is what’s the nature of the argument that we’re advancing and how far we are connecting with people. All I can say is I was knocking on doors all yesterday afternoon and evening in this by-election and nobody – plenty of scepticism about politics, about why people were or were not coming out to vote, some really interesting conversations I had – nobody, not one person told me that their concern was about Mr Miliband.” Phew, that was close "“I think he is a leader of a country and I think he’s shown that he’s got real leadership qualities in the last four years since he became leader. I didn’t vote for him, let me say so. I was a sceptic, but I think he has shown these [leadership qualities]." This also provides a gratuitous opportunity to put in some pictures of pandas. Just what every needs after a full morning of political analysis. A giant panda, not Ed Miliband 13.52: "If this doesn’t wake Labour up to our problems, what will?" A very interesting insight from the Labour blog labourlist here.

Mark Ferguson, the blog's editor says it must be a "astronomical wake up call" for all the parties. He writes: "Heywood and Middleton was nearly a dagger to the heart of the Labour Party. In the end it was a painful near miss instead. But a near miss is only worth anything if we learn from it. "For many in the North, voting Tory is a non-starter after the brutal Thatcher years. And yet voting UKIP comes with less of the baggage. Labour are right to say that UKIP are “More Tory than the Tories” – but we also need to have a more compelling case to explain why disillusioned voters should even give us a second look in the first place.

We aren’t there yet." It is well worth a read in full here 13.35: Failure of Labour and Tories to be "open and realistic" about immigration "fuels anger and distrust", senior Labour MP says &amp;lt;noframe&amp;gt;Twitter: Margaret Hodge MP - Speaking to &amp;lt;a href="" target="_blank"&amp;gt;#wato&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; &amp;lt;a href="" target="_blank"&amp;gt;#ClactonByElection&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; failure of mainstream parties to be open and realistic about immigration fuels anger and distrust (1/2)&amp;lt;/noframe&amp;gt; &amp;lt;noframe&amp;gt;Twitter: Margaret Hodge MP - We must focus on addressing legitimate concerns about fairness of system and pressure on public services &amp;lt;a href="" target="_blank"&amp;gt;#wato&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; &amp;lt;a href="" target="_blank"&amp;gt;#ClactonByElection&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; (2/2)&amp;lt;/

noframe&amp;gt; 13.27: Ukip's next MPs?

Where the party's tanks are heading After Douglas Carswell won Clacton, in a week long tour Tom Rowley, Special Correspondent, visit the seats UKIP thinks Nigel Farage, Mark Reckless, Tim Aker and Victoria Ayling could win. Worth a full read to see all the fantastic graphics by Tom Shiel and video by Julian Simmonds. It is a decade since Nigel Farage first predicted an electoral earthquake. Then, like now, he had just been chosen to contest the Kent seat of South Thanet for UKIP. Opening the party’s first shop, in Ramsgate, he promised not only to purchase a velour dressing gown emblazoned with a £ logo, but also that his party had “every chance” of “getting into Westminster” in 2005. It was not to be. In the end, even Mr Farage won only five percent of the vote. Five years later, he again failed in his ambition to get to Parliament, after an unsuccessful attempt to unseat John Bercow, the Speaker, in Buckingham. Today, Mr Farage remains merely a candidate, but UKIP has at last “shifted the tectonic plates” to reach Westminster.

That beachhead has finally been won, just not on the sands of Ramsgate. The victorious Kippers are packing up their purple and yellow windbreaks in Clacton-on-Sea, where the Conservative defector Douglas Carswell was last night elected on 60 percent of the vote, and moving on. Campaigners in Heywood and Middleton will also be chuffed to have come within 617 votes of beating Labour. When Mr Farage opened that shop, he was not even the party’s leader (remember Roger Knapman?) and Robert Kilroy-Silk was its star turn. Two years later, David Cameron famously dismissed UKIP as “fruitcakes, loonies and closet racists”. If Mr Cameron was correct, there are now enough fruitcakes to feed a Women’s Institute convention. Victory in Clacton follows the party’s historic success in winning the European elections in May, so the question is no longer “will UKIP ever reach Parliament?” but: “Where next?” “What was perhaps once an amateurish operation has become far more competent,” said Matthew Goodwin, associate professor of politics at Nottingham University and co-author of Revolt on the Right, a book about the party’s rise.

“[Clacton] will provide UKIP with momentum.” So, where will Mr Farage park his tank next? I spent the week touring four of the most likely seats to fall to this purple revolution. Keep reading 13.15: Ed Miliband: It's not prejudiced to worry about immigration Making a direct pitch to Ukip voters the Labour leader said: "I know you feel that this country doesn’t work for you and I am determined we show over the coming months that on jobs, housing and wages we deliver. "And I know also that you have specific concerns on immigration – that’s why I have changed my party’s approach on immigration since 2010. It’s not prejudiced to worry about immigration. "Now, I’m not going to make false promises as the Tories have done because that makes people even more cynical about politics. "We have a real plan to ensure wages aren’t undercut, to ensure people earn their entitlements and to ensure we have tough and fair controls and I am determined we show we can meet people’s concerns. 13.01: Overplaying his Hand?

There will be no more Conservative defections deputy chief whip declares Mark Reckless, who defected to Ukip, on stage with Nigel Farage, GEOFF PUGH Christopher Hope, Senior Political Correspondent has this: He might live to regret this but one on the Conservatives' most senior Commons whips has forecast that no more Tory MPs will defect to the UK Independence Party before the general election. Asked if there will be any further defections from the Conservatives to Ukip by Greg Hands, the deputy chief whip, told the BBC's Andrew Neil: “No I don’t think there will be.” Asked how he could be so sure, Mr Hands said “because part of my job is to know the Conservative party and I am confident that there won’t be. “I just don’t believe that there are based on my knowledge of the Conservative party.

I don’t believe there are others to follow.” Asked if the Conservative whips had looked possible defectors in the eye and challenged them not to defect he said: “I am not going to get into the operational side of the whips office with you all I am saying is that I am confident there will not be further people doing this.” 12.49: The next target - Will Mark Reckless will take Rochester and Strood for UKIP? 12.44: Paul Nuttall, Ukip's deputy leader, says that Labour MPs and councillors should join Ukip because it is now more "working class" He said: If you want to come and join what is now statistically the most working class party in Britain, a party that represents your views, a party that wants to bring democracy back to these shores from the European Union, a party that wants to protect its borders to ensure that the working man's wage isn't depreciated and people aren't put out of work by bring undercut [then join]. If you want to ensure that your children have the best education, that our defence is fully funded, if you want to ensure our NHS is kept public, come over and join Ukip.

12.35: For the first Nigel Farage has announced he could support a minority Government after May 2015 election. Mr Farage ruled out coalition however he said “there are other ways” to hold the balance of power in a minority Government. Asked if he would join a coaltion Government he said “I don't honestly think that's what has to be done, just because the liberal democrats did that. There are other ways. You can support a minority government by saying on motions of confidence or on key bills you would give them support. There are lots of ways of doing this." He added: “Do I think there is a possibility where after May we could find ourselves in a position in a hung parliament where we have serious influence in the House of Commons? Yes, that's a possibility?” It comes as bookmakers slash their odds that it will be Nigel Farage’s party that will hold the balance of power in the event of another coalition Government.

William Hill cut its odds that Ukip will be in coalition from 20/1 to 6/1 12.00: Ukip are coming under sustained pressure over their comments on banning people with life threatening illnesses from Britain Michael Deacon sends this: Malala Yousufzai, who's just won the Nobel Peace Prize, came to Britain for life-saving hospital treatment in 2013. Do Ukip consider her a "health tourist" who shouldn't have been allowed in for treatment? Douglas Carswell, on walkabout in Clacton, refuses to answer. "I'm not going to answer that question," he says. "I'm not familiar with that case." Reporter asks if his refusal to answer is a demonstration of Ukip's "new" approach to politics. Carswell says nothing Malala came to Britain for life saving treatment.

Today she won the Nobel Peace Prize 11.47: David Cameron: This is the most important election in a generation and if you vote Ukip you will get Ed Miliband as PM The Prime Minister: "I think the next election is the most important in a generation, and I think what last night demonstrates if you see a big Ukip vote you will end up with Ed Miliband as Prime Minister, Ed Balls as Chancellor and Labour in power and more to the point you won’t have the long term economic plan that is beginning to deliver for people in this country the stability and security that people want.

Speaking from his constituency in Whitney he added that a vote for Ukip meant "no action on immigration, no European referendum and most importantly you won’t get the continuation of the plan that is delivering the success of our economy and security of our people." "So that is the wider lessons for last night and we have seven months to demonstrate that only a conservative Government can give people the stability and security that people want to see." 11.37: Douglas Carswell says he would never run to be leader because it would be a 'disaster for his family' Douglas Carswell has ruled out ever running to be leader, saying has neither the skills nor patience and it would be disaster for his family and the party. He squirmed and squirmed as repeatedly asked about HIV, saying they want a points system and Farage has been mischaracterised. But Farage stuck to his guns - patients with HIV and other illnesses must be kept out.

11.22: Conor Burns has added his voice to Conservatives congratulating Mr Carswell &amp;lt;noframe&amp;gt;Twitter: Conor Burns MP - Congratulations to &amp;lt;a href="" target="_blank"&amp;gt;@DouglasCarswell&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; on his win. Have shared many opinions over 20 years as friends. Still do. But I fight for my Party.&amp;lt;/noframe&amp;gt; 11.11: Douglas Carswell's father was the scientist to diagnose the first cases of HIV Both Nigel Farage and Douglas Carswell came under pressure during their walkabout in Clacton over HIV comments Wilson Carswell, a respected physician and Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons, diagnosed the first confirmed cases of HIV/AIDS in Uganda and inspired the character Dr Garrigan in Giles Foden's novel The Last King of Scotland. It would be interesting to know his thoughts on Nigel Farage's comments this morning that immigrants with HIV would be barred from the UK. Douglas Carswell appeared to back Mr Farage.

Michael Deacon reports Douglas Carswell's first reactons to his leader's comments Carswell on walkabout in Clacton, asked by reporters re Farage's comments on migrants with HIV: "You have gratuitously mischaracterised his position. We want the system they have in Australia. I will not allow you to mischaracterise his position." To further questions he simply repeated the last sentence. Asked by the Guardian whether Mr Farage's remarks on HIV had upset him given his father's role in helping to discover AIDS, Mr Carswell said: "We need an Australian-type immigration system with control over our borders. I don't recognise the Guardian's characterisation of the debate...I agree with everything that Nigel has said and we need an Australian type immigration system." All emigrants to Australia have to pass a full medical test. If evidence is found that they are suffering from Tuberculosis emigrants they are banned from settling in Australia until they have been treated however an automatic ban is not imposed on those who test positive for HIV. Instead an assessment is made about the likely impact of the costs of treating the person. 10.45: Michael Deacon has arrived in Clacton and look who he bumped into getting off the train...

I arrived in Clacton-on-Sea this morning at 8.50. The very first thing I saw on leaving the station: Nigel Farage, fag in hand, beside a white van, in front of a kebab shop. If only he'd been holding a pint of real ale rather than his phone, it could have been the perfect Ukip campaigning shot... And here's a (slightly sinister) photo of Nigel Farage grinning at the band of waiting photographers through the window of Ukip's HQ in Clacton 10.26: Ed Balls has welcomed the new Heywood MP, with a strange blurry picture in a pub Big congratulations to @LMcInnes_Labour - Labour's newest MP, a worthy successor to the much-missed Jim Dobbin... pic.twitter.com/AHlpRC0uJ8 — Ed Balls (@edballsmp) October 10, 2014 10.17: Farage v Carswell Nigel Farage has some competition on his hands.

He says he is glad that the election of Mr Carswell Ukip is no longer a one man band, and Ukip does need a broader base of leadership if it is going to be taken seriously on issues other than immigration or Europe. However with commentators describing Mr Carswell, who has the experience of Westminster politics that Nigel Farage has not yet managed to achieve, he could also prove to be a threat. Dr Matthew Ashton, a politics expert at Nottingham Trent University, said it will now be Mr Carswell who is in demand for Newsnight, Question Time and other programmes. He said: “Carswell lacks Farage's scene-stealing personality, but on the other hand projects a more statesman like figure, much more likely to give nuanced answers rather than bold projections. It's debatable whether this approach will gain new followers or de-energise this existing base.” Here Toby Young explores whether Mr Carswell can drag Ukip into the 21st Century 10.04: Fraser Nelson warns the Tories that they can't just stick to their leafy heartlands and forget the poor Let it not be said that Giles Watling, the Conservative candidate for Clacton, has had an easy career.

He started as a child actor in Crossroads and worked his way up, via a series of cameos, to being cast as Revd Oswald in a BBC sitcom, Bread. When roles grew harder to come by he persevered, playing “gangster at airport” in the Channel 4 drama Melissa and, last year, “man in a pub” in Run for Your Wife (hailed as one of the worst films made in Britain). And last month, his appetite for punishment seemingly undiminished, he agreed to play another role: a sacrificial lamb, offered up by the Tories to Ukip. Read it in full here 09.54: If you think its bad for Labour and the Tories what about the poor Lib Dems? The dire by-election performance in Clacton is actually by no means their worst since they joined Government in 2010 Steven Swinford, Senior politcal Correspondent explains how Clacton fits in with their recent by-election doom. The Liberal Democrat's performance in the Clacton and Heywood and Middleton by-elections may have been disastrous, but it did not come as a surprise.

Nick Clegg's party is becoming increasingly accustomed to by-election oblivion, and the result is by no means the worst in the party's recent history. The party has lost its £500 deposit on seven occasions after securing less than 5 per cent of the vote since the General Election Tom Mludzinski, head of political polling at ComRes, said: “The Lib Dems once performed incredibly strongly in by-elections, they used to show real impact. They were outsiders. Now, however, they are a party of government and it is much more difficult for them. “They are haemorrhaging votes in seats that aren’t theirs. It makes very depressing reading for a party of government, we have never had a government party perform so badly.” READ THE LIB DEM BY-ELECTION SHOCKERS IN FULL 09.49: There will not be a "shred of complacency" in Labour after Ukip surge in by-elections The Labour leader says that the Tories "lost in their own backyard" in Clacton but makes little of the hammering the Labour majority got in Heywood and Middleton. He said: “I want to congratulate Labour’s new Member of Parliament for Heywood and Middleton, Liz McInnes.

What we saw last night was a Tory party losing in their own backyard in Clacton and in retreat on what used to be their frontline in the northwest. “But there won’t be a shred of complacency from us as we reach out to all of those voters who didn’t vote Labour and those who didn’t vote at all.” 09.38: Nigel Farage: I unveiled Tory defectors like “jack in the boxes” The Ukip leader said that he announced that Douglas Carswell and Mark Reckless had switched sides with such pomp and ceremony because everything else in politics is cynical and pre-leaked. However he warned that there were more defections to come and no one should rule out someone from the Labour benches deciding to stand as a Ukip candidate. He said: “Let me just say, I have had these conversations with backbench Conservatives and even had these conversations with backbench Labour MPs. I wouldn’t be surprised over the course of the next few months if there were more defections.

Asked if that would include a Labour MP switching to Ukip he added: “Let’s see, don’t rule it out.” 09.22:Nigel Farage will head to Rochester tomorrow to campaign with Mark Reckless Mark Reckless campaigns in Clacton, Stefan Wermuth/Reuters One by-election down but politics waits for no man. We are expecting the by-election for Rochester and Strood prompted by the defection of Mark Reckless to be announced for the beginning of November. 09.11: Nigel Farage is being challenged on his comment on HIV by a woman who has been living with the disease for decades A caller called Charlie tells Mr Farage that he is "ramping up the fear makes people hide" and accuses him of "playing the race card" and "homing in on black people". She says she is not a "drain on the health service" just because she has HIV.

Mr Farage says: "If we turn the national health service, and the clue is in the name, if we change it to the global health service, we are going to have a serious problem with resources." He says his comments on HIV come in a broader context about deciding on the "the quantity and quality" of the immigrants that come in. Another woman, Nicky, calls up and says she is a Polish immigrant who works and pays taxes and asks Farage "what are you going to do with people like me?" He asks he how much she earns. Then says anyone who has come to Britain legally so far "need not fear" but in the future they want immigrants to be barred from a selection of benefits.

09.08: Nigel Farage celebrate no longer being "a one man band" 09.03: Al Murray sums up the confusion of this morning &amp;lt;noframe&amp;gt;Twitter: Al Murray - Wait: if I vote Conservative I get Labour but if I vote UKIP I get Labour and if vote Labour I get Conservative and if I vote Lib Dem I get&amp;lt;/noframe&amp;gt; 08.56: Ukip success "a serious assault into Labour's neglected core vote", Frank Field Labour MP He said: "If last night's vote heralds the start of UKIP's serious assault into Labour's neglected core vote, all bets are off for safer, let alone marginal seats at the next election." 08.50: Conservative MPs are not happy with their party's reaction to the Carswell win A growing number appear to think that their party is failing to deal with the key issue of voter anger and alienation - and making sure they publically congratulate the country's first ever Ukip MP.

&amp;lt;noframe&amp;gt;Twitter: Zac Goldsmith - Congratulations to &amp;lt;a href="" target="_blank"&amp;gt;@DouglasCarswell&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; on his win, and for a wonderful victory speech.&amp;lt;/noframe&amp;gt; &amp;lt;noframe&amp;gt;Twitter: Zac Goldsmith - . &amp;lt;a href="" target="_blank"&amp;gt;@TimMontgomerie&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; &amp;lt;a href="" target="_blank"&amp;gt;@BBCNormanS&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; Totally agree. The Carswell vote was exactly that - a big Carswell vote. The H+M result was pure UKIP.&amp;lt;/noframe&amp;gt; &amp;lt;noframe&amp;gt;Twitter: James Wharton MP - Lots of by election spinning going on. Main parties got a kick from the public which should not be ignored.

Congrats to &amp;lt;a href="" target="_blank"&amp;gt;@DouglasCarswell&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/noframe&amp;gt; &amp;lt;noframe&amp;gt;Twitter: Douglas Carswell - &amp;lt;a href="" target="_blank"&amp;gt;@jameswhartonmp&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; thanks James. Good to catch up next week&amp;lt;/noframe&amp;gt; &amp;lt;noframe&amp;gt;Twitter: James Wharton MP - &amp;lt;a href="" target="_blank"&amp;gt;@DouglasCarswell&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; always a pleasure. Staying put though (for any media speculators!)&amp;lt;/noframe&amp;gt; &amp;lt;noframe&amp;gt;Twitter: Glyn Davies - Congratulations Douglas on a very impressive victory.

Good constituency MP rewarded for hard work and engaging with constituents.&amp;lt;/noframe&amp;gt; 08.35: "Vote for us to keep out the other guy" is not enough Not all Conservative MPs think Mr Shapps' vote Tory or you'll get a smiling Ed Miliband is the best approach. Here the Conservative chair of the select committee weighs in. &amp;lt;noframe&amp;gt;Twitter: Sarah Wollaston MP - "Vote for us to keep out the other guy" line is not enough, nor abuse, all Parties should start wider challenge of political reform&amp;lt;/noframe&amp;gt; 08.32: Douglas Carswell is "dazed and humbled" after winning the Clacton by-election, watch him directly after his victory 08.24: The astonishing rise of Ukip - through their by-election sucesses Steven Swinford, Senior Political Correspondent reports: Ukip's success in Clacton and near-win in Heywood and Middleton is a relatively recent phenomenon. For more than a decade the party languished in the polls, routinely winning less than 5 per cent of the vote.

In November 2012, however, the party made a series of significant breakthroughs, winning more than 20 per cent of the vote in Rotherham, Eastleigh and South Shields. The win in Clacton, however, and the prospect of further defections take the party into a different league 08.14: Nigel Farage is in hot water this morning over comments that immigrants with HIV would be barred from coming to the UK . The Ukip leader was accused of stooping to a “new level of ignorance” after he called for people who have tested positive for HIV to be banned from migrating to Britain as a “good start” in controlling the UK’s borders. When asked by Newsweek Europe what sort of people should be allowed to migrate to Britain, he said: “People who do not have HIV, to be frank. That’s a good start. And people with a skill.” Mr Farage defended his comments this morning. He said: “This is a desperate attempt by the newspapers who support the existing parties to try to sully the phenomenal performance of Ukip last night by picking up one little area. What I’ve said is this: I believe that we should control the number of people that come into Britain.

"We should control the quantity, but also control the quality. We want immigration into Britain with people who have got skills, trades and jobs; but we don’t want them if they’ve got serious criminal records and we don’t want them if they’ve got life-threatening diseases." # 08.04: Nigel Farage: The Conservatives will soon be saying “if you vote Ukip you will get Ebola” Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images The Ukip leader has been doing the rounds. He is in fighting form this morning mocking the Conservative chairman Grant Shapps for the Conservative’s defeat. Mr Farage said that Mr Shapps was “bleating on” and talking “rubbish” about how Ukip will deliver Labour to Downing Street. Ukip, he says is now the “only truly national party” and the “only party that can challenge in solid Tory areas and solid Labour areas." His party was so close to victory in Heywood and Middleton Mr Farage has been criticised for being complacent in the seat, suggesting that if he had thrown the kitchen sink at it rather than focusing on Clacton they would have inched it. He said this was rubbish and the Ukip surge reveals how “desperate” Labour are in the North.

“We will now take the people’s army of Ukip to Rochester and Strood and we will give that absolutely everything we have got,” he added. 07.53: Grant Shapps has a simple message - vote Ukip and put Ed Miliband in No 10 with a smile on his face Grant Shapps, the Conservative Party chairman said: “A vote for Ukip gets Ed Miliband, with a smile on his face, closer to Downing Street.” 07.52: Is England turning purple? 07.44: The by-elections which shook Britain This country has a long and complicated history of by-elections. From the The Strange Rebirth of Liberal England in 1962 to the slow demise of Scottish Labour culimating the the 'Glasgow kiss' by election in a Scottish Labour heartland in 2008 hitting Gordon Brown hard. Read the full 15 by-elections that shook Britain here. 07.18: Elections have changed forever John Curtice, the polling expert has said Ukip's resurgence shows that next year's general election will be unlike any in Post-war Britain.

Instead should we should expect a four party fight, possibly even five if the Green's continue their rise as an outside horse. 07.11: Labour have said that last night results show the "scale of the challenge" Douglas Alexnader, Labour's shadow foriegn secretary Douglas Alexander has been on Good Morning Britain to say that next election is not going to be simply a battle between Labour and the Conservatives but really "gainst the sense of alienation and despair that so many people feel about politics and how it’s been done in the past." The problem is, those people are voting Ukip. 07.04: Ukip: "We are coming to get you" The Conservatives may be playing down the result but Ukip are having none of it. Tim Aker, the Ukip MEP for East England, explained the importance of the win to a party that has been dismissed and insulted by mainstream political parties across the board: "It’s already spreading down the Essex coast. Essex is turning purple, it looks like it’s starting here tonight. “The fact is that everyone was saying Ukip could never get a seat… this will be the start. The rest of the country… we’ll just have to wait and see.

People are listening to us, they’ve had enough. “I’ve heard that our vote is looking incredibly close [in Heywood and Middleton]. There are no safe seats for the other parties now… we’re coming to get you", he told Newsnight. 06.55: Meanwhile in Clacton our reporter spies cracks beginning to emerge between Nigel Farage and Douglas Carswell Matthew Holehouse takes this snap as he follows Nigel Farage following the Ukip win After his storming win Mr Carswell tells 5Live that Ukip's sucess was down to a protest vote. "Women got the vote because of protest. Slavery was abolished because of protest. There's a lot to be said for protest. There's a lot to protest about." That's interesting. And it's not the Farage line, who said about an hour earlier: "This is not a protest vote." And Douglas knows that's the Farage line, because Farage says it a lot. Another point: on the day Carswell won his seat in Parliament, Nigel Farage repeatedly reminded us hacks that he'd been in the party 20 years, was one of its first three MEPs and had led it through hell, high water and 35 by-elections to get to this point.

The relationship of these two is going to be something to watch. 06.44: Our reporter's dispatch from Heywood and Middleton where Ukip almost gave Labour an upset Labour's Liz Mcinnes celebrates her victory, Peter Byrne/PA Ben Riley-Smith, political correspondent, was there all night, and brings us this: There was little hint of the drama that was to unfold when the polls closed at 10pm and the spinning begun at the Heywood Sports Arena, the sports hall hosting the count. Both sides were suggesting that Labour would win by a margin of 2,000 to 3,000 - an embarrassment certainly, halving the party's majority, but not a body blow. However as the night wore on whispers began to circulate that things were were tighter than presumed. Labour continued to focus on the Coalition parties. "Tories will be above 10 per cent from 27 per cent in 2010," a Labour source texted around midnight, putting the focus on the Conservatives. But then came the dramatic twist. "We're calling a recount," a Ukip spinner revealed quietly just before 1am. Others were told the same.

Was it a rouse or were things really that close? Then Paul Nuttall, Ukip deputy leader, spilled the beans on live TV - there were just 620 votes in it. Labour was in danger of losing a seat it had held for a generation to a party that got less than two per cent there in 2010. Suddenly the room woke up. Liz McInnes, Labour's candidate, sat in nervous silence in a team huddle by the stairway leading to the press enclosure. John Bickley, Ukip's man, spoke excitedly to the press and the "seismic" result. Could Ukip really pull it off? Two MPs in a single night?! In the end, it fell Labour's way, but the body language during the acceptance speech said it all. Ms McInnes, relief writ large, read her pre-written speech from the podium while the Ukip team jeered, chortled and heckled thought. This was Labour's win, but undeniably Ukip's night. 06.39: Conservatives downplay the loss in Clacton The Conservatives are downplaying the crushing defeat in the True Blue Clacton seat.

The Conservatives will console themselves that Clacton has an overwhelmingly white, elderly population and Mr Carswell is the incumbent MP. However it is a big moment for Ukip even if the Tories don't want to admit it. Priti Patel, the treasury minister, said that Douglas Carswell "used his incumbency under the new Ukip brand" in a "dissappointing" night for the Conservatives.

Clacton results in full: Douglas Carswell (UKIP) 21,113 (59.75%) Giles Watling (C) 8,709 (24.64%, -28.38%) Tim Young (Lab) 3,957 (11.20%, -13.84%) Chris Southall (Green) 688 (1.95%, +0.71%) Andy Graham (LD) 483 (1.37%, -11.57%) Bruce Sizer (Ind) 205 (0.58%) Howling Laud Hope (Loony) 127 (0.36%) Charlotte Rose (Ind) 56 (0.16%) UKIP maj 12,404 (35.10%) Electorate 69,118; Turnout 35,338 (51.13%, -13.05%) Heywood and Middleton result in full Liz McInnes (Lab) 11,633 (40.86%, +0.75%) John

 Bickley (UKIP) 11,016 (38.69%, +36.06%) Iain Gartside (C) 3,496 (12.28%, -14.88%) Anthony Smith (LD) 1,457 (5.12%, -17.59%) Abi Jackson (Green) 870 (3.06%) Lab maj 617 (2.17%) Electorate 79,170; Turnout 28,472 (35.96%, -21.57%) 06.20: Douglas Carswell victory speech UKIP candidate Douglas Carswell in the Clacton-on-Sea counting hall.

Stefan Wermuth/Reuters As Matthew Holehouse, who was watching the action all night in Clacton, Mr Carswell used his very first speech as Ukip MP to critique his party's immigration policies. That speech in full: Tory MP Douglas Carswell defects to Ukip and forces byelection | Politics | The Guardian Conservatives Tory MP Douglas Carswell defects to Ukip and forces byelection Eurosceptic MP says he is resigning from parliament and standing for Ukip at a byelection in his Essex seat of Clacton Nicholas Watt , chief political correspondent Thursday 28 August 2014 08.53 EDT First published on Thursday 28 August 2014 08.53 EDT Close This article is 2 years old A hand grenade has been thrown into David Cameron's general election campaign after the Eurosceptic Tory MP Douglas Carswell defected to Ukip, triggering an early byelection. A leading member of the new generation of Tory Eurosceptics who has campaigned openly for a British exit from the EU, Carswell said he had endured sleepless nights in the runup to his decision, which was prompted by the prime minister's failure to deliver change in the EU.

Carswell indicated he would shortly resign as MP for Clacton, Essex, guaranteeing a difficult byelection for the Tories. As the sitting MP, Carswell will have an immediate advantage in a seat described by the academic Matthew Goodwin as the most Ukip-friendly area in the country. It is the first time since 1982 that an MP has resigned their seat to fight a byelection on behalf of another party. Criticising the Tories for failing to deliver change, Carswell said: "They are not serious about real change. It's above all the failure to deliver on the promise of political reform that has driven me to be here today. "Europe's the one continent on the globe that is not growing … yet who in Westminster, who among our so-called leaders, is prepared to envisage real change?" UKIP (@UKIP) August 28, 2014 William Hague, the leader of the Commons, led an immediate Tory fightback against Carswell as he declared that his former colleague's defection would make an EU membership referendum less likely by increasing the chances of an Ed Miliband victory.

Hague told The World at One on BBC Radio 4: "It is a regrettable thing and it is a totally counterproductive thing to do because the only chance of real change in Europe, the only chance of having a referendum where people can decide to stay in the EU or leave the EU is having a majority Conservative government at the election next year. Anything that makes that more difficult damages the chances of change in Europe or the people in this country having their say." But Nigel Farage, who unveiled his new party member at a Westminster press conference after secretive negotiations, said he expected further defections. Farage told The World at One: "We have talked to Tory and Labour MPs over the course of the last six months who very very strongly support everything Ukip is trying to do. The real answer to [the] question – how many others – will all depend on this byelection. This byelection is going to be a High Noon moment." Carswell's announcement hands the prime minister a major pre-election headache on the eve of the return of parliament from its summer recess.

Ukip will receive wall-to-wall coverage in the runup to the byelection, where it will start as the favourite in a seat where Carswell had a majority of 12,068 at the last general election. Carswell's move may also encourage other Tories to jump ship. Eurosceptic Tories who remain in the party may feel emboldened to challenge the PM, possibly by declaring in their general election addresses that they would campaign to leave the EU in the referendum planned by Cameron in 2017. Carswell said he had welcomed the prime minister's EU speech in January last year, in which Cameron pledged to hold an in/out referendum on Britain's EU membership by 2017. He said: "No one cheered DC's Bloomberg speech more loudly than me … but there's been nothing since. They haven't thought it through. There is a world of change and opportunity out there. Ministers are simply not up to giving us the kind of realignment we need. UKIP (@UKIP) August 28, 2014 "I've had more sleepless nights than you can possibly imagine. I am standing here precisely because I know that neither side wants real change [on the EU].

Ed Miliband has been honest enough to say he doesn't want real change. The Conservative leadership is not serious about change … David Cameron has made up his mind that he wants to stay in." Carswell, who voted for Cameron in the 2005 leadership contest, said he had no personal difficulties with the PM. "I happen to like David Cameron – I am not expecting him to now reciprocate my feelings. He is fun, he is a likeable person. He is a nice, decent person. He is just not serious about the change we need." Sitting alongside Farage, Carswell joked about his record as a rebellious Tory MP. "It's nice to have a leader with whom I agree." Farage joked: "It is early days though." The Ukip leader praised Carswell for his bravery as he became the first MP since the late Bruce Douglas-Mann in 1982 to resign a parliamentary seat in order to trigger a byelection where he will stand for another party. Farage said Carswell had made the "bravest and most honourable" decision he had seen in British politics. It is unclear when the byelection will be held. Carswell did not say when he would be resigning his seat.

The writ for any byelection would be moved by the Tories. The defection of Carswell will not cause great surprise in Tory circles, but his decision will fuel fears that the party may be heading for an historic split on Europe. Some senior Eurosceptics have said the party will undergo its most damaging split since the Corn Laws of the mid-19th century if the prime minster holds his in/out EU membership referendum. Miliband tweeted: "Douglas Carswell's defection is not just a blow to David Cameron. It shows the Tory Party too divided to stand up for hard-working families." Carswell is respected across the board at Westminster for the clarity of his thinking. He is a strong supporter of greater transparency in politics and has campaigned for parliamentary candidates to be selected in open primaries and for a power of recall of MPs to be introduced. He says his stance on EU withdrawal developed out of a belief the organisation is run by unaccountable and undemocratic institutions. On Tuesday, Farage was selected to fight the Conservative-held seat of South Thanet in Kent at next May's general election.

Douglas Carswell: the frequent Tory rebel Photograph: Paul Grover/Rex Features Douglas Carswell MP Photograph: Paul Grover/Rex Features A frequent Tory rebel on Europe, Douglas Carswell first stood for parliament in 2001 against Tony Blair, as the Conservative candidate for Sedgefield. He apologised for coming second, but managed to cut Blair's majority by over 7,500 votes. The Clacton MP entered parliament in 2005 and helped write a publication, Direct Democracy: an Agenda for a New Model Party. The publication was described by the Spectator as being "one of the founding texts of the new, revitalised Toryism", which had "argued compellingly that the party should embrace radical localism". A number of ideas outlined in it have since become mainstream Conservative thinking; the call for directly elected police chiefs is now party policy and the use of open primaries to select party candidates. Carswell, often described as a libertarian, gained notoriety at Westminster when he led a campaign to remove Michael Martin, then the Speaker of the House, for a failure to ensure greater transparency on how the Commons is run.

In December 2009, Carswell introduced a bill requesting a public referendum on British EU membership. During the 2009 expenses scandal, the Daily Telegraph revealed he had claimed among other things a £655 "love seat" and had flipped his second home. He lived up to his law and order credentials by turning crimefighter in his own constituency in January, breaking the news on Twitter. "Just chased and caught a shoplifter in Clacton … waiting for police." Seven minutes later, he tweeted again: "Police response time pretty effective. Arrested. Now off to my advice surgery." Carswell later explained: "I was in the centre of Clacton going from one constituency appointment to the next as MPs do on a Friday. I heard someone shout and saw someone trying to run away. There was a store detective shouting at them." Born in 1971, Carswell grew up in Africa where his parents worked as doctors among some of the world's poorest people. His father, Wilson Carswell, a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons, diagnosed the first cases of HIV/Aids in Uganda in the early 1980s.

Carswell went to St Andrew's School, Turi, in Kenya and then Charterhouse in the UK. He read history at the University of East Anglia and at King's College, London. Before politics, Carwell worked in television and then investment management. He also worked in the Conservative party's policy unit, run by David Cameron.

Conservative party says it will hold public meeting at which residents will vote from a shortlist selected by local association Published: 4 Sep 2014 Essex vote triggered by former Conservative MP Douglas Carswell's shock defection to Ukip will be held on 9 October Published: 2 Sep 2014 44-point lead predicted for Douglas Carswell, whose defection from the Tories to Nigel Farage's party shocked Westminster Published: 31 Aug 2014 Tory Eurosceptics say they will push for exit after general election as Ukip tries to build on Douglas Carswell's defection Published: 29 Aug 2014 Douglas Carswell of the Uk Independence Party party - bio PARLIAMENT LINK View Parliament profile Bio John Douglas Wilson Carswell (born 3 May 1971) is a British politician who in 2014 became the first elected Member of Parliament for the UK Independence Party (UKIP), representing Clacton. Formerly a member of the Conservative Party, Carswell was elected as the MP for Harwich in 2005 and Clacton in 2010.

In August 2014 he changed his political allegiance to UKIP and announced his resignation as an MP, thereby necessitating a by-election in which he stood and was returned as a UKIP MP. He explained that he was joining UKIP out of a desire to see "fundamental change in British politics" and because he believed "many of those at the top of the Conservative Party are simply not on our side. They aren't serious about the change that Britain so desperately needs." UKIP's Douglas Carswell taking Commons seat - BBC News BBC News UKIP's Douglas Carswell taking Commons seat 13 October 2014 Close share panel Media captionDouglas Carswell: "People want change and I think change is coming." UKIP's first elected MP said that "change is coming" as he arrived to take his seat at the House of Commons. Douglas Carswell, who defected from the Conservatives, won last week's Clacton by-election by 12,404 votes. Arriving at Westminster, Mr Carswell said he would focus on two things - bringing about a recall bill for MPs, and reforming the banking industry.

He told journalists he felt "reinvigorated" and paid tribute to his party leader Nigel Farage. Labour's Liz McInnes, who won the by-election in Heywood and Middleton, was also sworn in as an MP and took her Commons seat for the first time. MPs are returning to Westminster after the party conference recess. Image caption Labour's Liz McInnes retained Heywood and Middleton for Labour Image caption Douglas Carswell said he felt 'reinvigorated' after his by-election win Mr Carswell said people felt "let down" by what he called the "three-party system". He said he would be supporting Conservative MP Zac Goldsmith's proposals for voters to be able to sack MPs, and said he would "hold ministers to account" over border control. He also said the "Tory attack machine" had tried to undermine former Conservative MP Mark Reckless, who has also defected to UKIP, triggering a by-election in his Rochester and Strood constituency. Essex elects first UKIP MP - ITV News 10 October 2014 at 3:18am Essex elects first UKIP MP Douglas Carswell has become UKIP's first elected MP after winning the Clacton by-election.

The UK Independence Party's first elected MP has compared the Conservative party to HMV music stores, describing it as "defunct". Douglas Carswell speaking to Andrew Marr. Credit: BBC/The Andrew Marr Show "It's a little bit like HMV music. Once ubiquitous when it came to buying music. The way the Tory party is retailing politics is like the way HMV retailed music - it is a defunct retail model," Douglas Carswell told the BBC's Andrew Marr show. Carswell, who won the Clacton by-election with a huge majority last week, said he argued that "we needed to Spotify" the Tory Party, but found too much opposition to change. He also played own suggestions Ukip could gain 25 MPs at the next election, saying: "Let's keep a sense of perspective....I don't like bravado talk and Ia'm not going to use it." Carswell he was hopeful fellow Tory defector Mark Reckless would win the upcoming by-election in Rochester, saying a win would show that British politics is becoming "fundamentally different".

UKIP leader Nigel Farage (centre) and newly elected Ukip MP Douglas Carswell (right) joins their party's candidate Mark Reckless on Rochester High Street Credit: PA UKIP has accused the Westminster parties of running a smear campaign against them and has ruled out entering into any form of election pact with the Conservatives. It comes as Nigel Farage and newly elected MP Douglas Carswell hit the campaign trail in Rochester and Strood in the fight to rally support for Tory defector Mark Reckless. Addressing supporters in the Kent constituency, Mr Farage said the party was "targeting everybody in this campaign". He said: "Let's make the people's army of Ukip march on Rochester and Strood." UKIP supporters from across the South East flooded the Rochester and Strood constituency as the campaign to get Mr Reckless into parliament got underway. The date for the vote is yet to be set.

Tory MP Douglas Carswell defects to UKIP with attack on David Cameron | Daily Mail Online 'Cameron is not serious about real change to the EU': Tory MP defects to UKIP with stinging attack on Prime Minister - as Farage warns more may follow Clacton MP resigned from the Conservative Party and Parliament today He said David Cameron was 'not serious about changes this country needs' By-election likely to take place within the next six weeks, possibly October 9 Mr Carswell will become first elected UKIP Member of Parliament if he wins But the defection has sparked a row because UKIP already had a candidate UKIP leader Nigel Farage today claimed more MPs were willing to follow But the PM today vowed to launch a 'very strong' campaign against UKIP

Question: Which constituency returned Douglas Carswell as the first UKIP MP in October 2014?
Answer: CLACTON