Wycombe

Mr Goodman, 45, more than doubled his majority in the Wycombe and Marlow constituency when the result was announced at 2.15am.

Tories polled 20,331 votes beating Labour's Julia Wassell with 13,280. The Lib Dems were third, polling 8,780.

The MP, first elected in June 2001, whose majority rocketed to 7,051, said he had never been in any doubt that he would win.

He added: "It is clear that this is a pretty good result and a very bad result nationally for Mr Blair. Now I shall take off my rosette and go to Westminster to represent the people of Wycombe."

His Labour opponent Julia Wassell told the Free Press that she had conceded defeat before counting of the votes began at 1.15am.

She said: "I expected the Tory majority to double, it is something I have been feeling for several weeks."

Ms Wassell said voters were upset about the Labour Government going to war in Iraq.

She added: "The Iraq war was one of the Labour Government's major mistakes, now it is a political mistake."

Miss Wassell, a Wycombe District councillor since 2002, said she hoped to become leader of the Labour Group at Buckinghamshire County Council, where she has been a member since 1997.

Liberal Democrat James Oates said his share of the vote was "very positive".

Bob Davis UKIP's candidate, who polled 1,735 said he expec-ted to do better than the party did in 2001. He believed there was a conspiracy among the three main parties not to discuss Europe.

Counting for the Wycombe and Marlow seat was delayed because the county council votes had to be separated from the parliamentary votes.

It took three hours just to get going in Wycombe compared to the 45 minutes it took Sunderland to complete their count earlier in the evening.

Turnout appeared to be high in some parts of Wycombe with queues reported at polling stations, but was recorded as 61.9 per cent.

Paul Goodman (Con) 20,331

Julia Wassell (Lab) 13,280

james Oates (Lib-Dem) 8,780

Robert dAVIES (UKIP) 1,735

DAVID FITTON (Ind) 301

Goodman's majority: 7,051