Boris Johnson faces a humiliating double blow in the by-election

Boris Johnson appears to have suffered a double defeat in the by-election as Labor won Wakefield and the Liberal Democrats claimed a historic victory in Tiverton and Honiton.

The contests, sparked by the resignation of disillusioned Tories, gave voters a chance to give their verdict on the prime minister just weeks after 41 percent of his MPs voted against him.

In Wakefield, Simon Lightwood was elected with a majority of 4,925.

Former Wakefield MP Imran Ahmad Khan has resigned after being found guilty of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy – a crime for which he was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

Wakefield was one of the so-called red wall seats won by the Conservatives in the 2019 general election, having been Labor since the 1930s.

With official results yet to be declared in Tiverton and Honiton, the Lib Dems claimed victory for candidate Richard Foord in the seat of Devon – which had been held by more than 24,000 Conservatives in 2019.

Neil Parish – the Tory MP who had more than 60% of the vote in 2019 – resigned after admitting to viewing pornography on his phone in the House of Commons.

A Lib Dem spokesman said: “It looks like a clear win. The people of Tiverton and Honiton have spoken for the country.

“This is a historic victory for the Liberal Democrats and a devastating blow to those Tory MPs who continue to support Boris Johnson.”

Johnson, who is at a summit of Commonwealth leaders in Rwanda, suggested he would be “crazy” to resign if the party lost the two seats and said mid-term by-elections “are never necessarily easy for anybody government”.