Election 2017 live updates: Theresa May claims Conservative government supported by DUP will provide 'certainty'
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Theresa May has said she will form a Conservative government backed by the DUP, claiming it can bring "certainty" to the UK.
After visiting the Queen, the Prime Minister claimed there was a "strong relationship" between the two parties, amid concern over the DUP's controversial anti-abortion and anti-LGBT policies.
The PM has also apologised to Conservatives who lost last night. She said: "I'm sorry for all those colleagues who lost their seats." She will "reflect on what we need to do in the future to take the party forward" after the result, she added.
The UK voted for a hung parliament after shock losses for the Conservatives in the 2017 general election. With 649 of 650 seats declared, the Tories had 318 seats - eight short of the figure needed to win outright - with Labour on 261, the SNP on 35 and Liberal Democrats on 12.
Jeremy Corbyn's party increase its share of the vote by 9.6 per cent, while the Tories were up 5.5 per cent, the Liberal Democrats, Greens and SNP saw small loses and Ukip's vote collapsed.
The live blog has now ended
Politicians, voters, and even their pets have been heading to polling stations and are posing for the cameras at every opportunity.
The Prime Minister has made clear that she would rely on the support of the Democratic Unionist Party in order to get her programme through Parliament, despite concern over its stance on issues including equal marriage, abortion and climate change.
Making no allusion to losses suffered by the Conservatives, Ms May said she intended to press ahead with her plans for Brexit.
She faced calls from within her own party to consider her own position after the election, which she brought forward by three years in the hope it would deliver an increased majority in the Commons.
Jeremy Corbyn urged her to resign and allow him to form a minority administration, declaring: “We are ready to serve this country.”
But, after intensive talks with the DUP, the Prime Minister instead drove the short distance to Buckingham Palace to ask the Queen for permission to form a new government.
The final election results came in late on Friday, after Kensington finally declared a Labour win — with a tiny 20-vote majority. They were:
Nicola Sturgeon has said she would be willing to be part of a progressive alliance depending on "the arithmetic".
Nicola Sturgeon said she was "disappointed by the SNP losses", but she added the result was the second best ever for the party.
She said: "This has been a disaster for Theresa May. She called an election clearly very arrogantly thinking she was going to crush the opposition, sweep everybody aside and cruise to a landslide majority.
"Her position I think is very, very difficult. We have to wait and see how things shake out. I've always said the SNP would want to be part of a progressive alternative to a Tory government.
"I'm disappointed at the SNP losses but I'm pleased that we've won the election."
Sky News is forecasting a hung parliament in its updated forecast, which puts the Conservatives on 315-325 seats.
PA's data expert Ian Jones says more than half a million pounds has now been lost in deposits so far in this election.
The Greens have lost the most so far, £143,000.
Deposits are lost if candidates do not get 5 per cent of the vote in that seat.
The Conservatives have gained West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine from the SNP.
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