UPDATE: Conservative Tim Loughton elected in East Worthing and Shoreham

Returning officer Alex Bailey announced the result at Impulse Leisure, in Manor Road, Lancing this morning (Friday, May 8).

The Tory won with 24,686 votes, ahead of Labour in second place, polling 9737 votes.

UKIP were squeezed into third on 8,267 votes, with Liberal Democrat candidate Bob Smytherman down in fourth on 3,360.

The Lib Dem result echoed the national picture of reduced votes, having come second in 2010.

In his acceptance speech, Mr Loughton said: “I am proud to represent the people who cast their vote today, to cast confidence in a Government that will keep us on the economic track back to recovery.”

The Greens received 2,605 votes and the National Health Action Party’s Carl Walker – one of just 12 candidates in the UK – polled 1,243.

Mr Loughton increased his share of the vote by 1 per cent to just over 49 per cent, with the Lib Dems the biggest losers, falling to just 6.7 per cent of the total votes.

Mr Smytherman said he looked forward to returning to his role as town crier and that he was proud of what his party had achieved nationally while in coalition with the Tories.