Tories reach Foot's success level (notionally)

The Rallings & Thrasher notional election results have now been published.

These are the "official numbers" that the BBC will quote in their coverage of the next election - they take the 2005 election results and transpose them onto the new boundaries that the next General Election will be fought on.

They provide a timely reminder of just what a mountain the Tories have to climb, for they show the Tories notionally hold just 210 seats - exactly 1 more, after 10 years in opposition, than Labour under Michael Foot won in the wipeout year of 1983 - after which it took Labour another 3 General Elections and 3 leaders to regain power.