Conservatives secure majority in UK General Election

Pre-election polls indicated that, due to the strong possibility of a hung parliament, the political parties in Westminster would again be entering negotiations around a coalition government. However, despite these predictions, the Conservatives have secured a majority and David Cameron will return to 10 Downing Street as Prime Minister later today.

The Conservatives achieved their best results in Wales since 1983 with 11 seats (three seats gained since 2010). The Liberal Democrats lost two seats and have one seat remaining in Wales, and Plaid Cymru retained their three seats. Labour secured 25 seats in Wales (one seat lost). UKIP saw a 10.7% rise in their share of the Welsh vote and came third in Wales' overall voting share.

Stuart Ropke, Group Chief Executive, commented: "We already know that Wales has suffered disproportionately from the impact of welfare reform, including the 'bedroom tax'. The Conservative Party manifesto includes proposals to make further cuts to the social security budget and housing benefit which will have a negative effect on many individuals and communities across Wales.

This is why it's vitally important that, in any new devolution settlement, the Welsh Government seeks parity with Scotland and Northern Ireland so that they have the ability, if they choose to exercise it, to mitigate some of the worst impacts for the most vulnerable in our communities. These issues, along with how we meet Wales' housing needs, will be centre stage as we build up to the Welsh Assembly Elections in 2016."

We will be issuing a detailed briefing paper next week on what the outcome of the General Election means for Wales and for our members.

You can view a full list of Welsh results here: http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/full-welsh-results-general-election-9212002