London: Hectic lobbying were on in Britain
to cobble up a majority to form a coalition government after
voters handed out a hung verdict in the polls, as Tories and
Liberal Democrats are set to meet tomorrow to thrash out a
pact to oust Prime Minister Gordon Brown from Downing Street.
Out of 648 seats declared yesterday, Tories won 305
seats, while Labour bagged 258 and Liberal Democrats secured
57 in the 650-member House of Commons. A total of 326 seats
are required for an absolute majority.
However, no deal will be done on any possible
coalition between the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives
before Monday, Tories said today.
Top-level negotiating teams from both Tories and Lib
Dems are due to meet tomorrow morning as they try to thrash
out a pact that would finally oust Gordon Brown from Downing
Street.
But the news that talks are set to drag on will
further unsettle the financial markets which plunged yesterday
when it became apparent that Britain was stuck with a hung
Parliament.
The pound and the London stock market took a
battering because of the political turmoil, with Brown - who
polled just 29 per cent of the vote - refusing to shift from
Downing Street.
This morning Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg spoke to
senior party MPs about joining the Conservatives in a
power-sharing coalition.
And David Cameron, the Conservative leader had talks
with his inner circle at the Tory Headquarters before heading
to join the other two leaders at the Cenotaph for a ceremony
to mark the 65th anniversary of VE (Victory in Europe) Day -
declared on May 8, 1945.
PTI
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First Published: Saturday, May 08, 2010, 21:43