Boris Johnson to visit the north of England after Labour heartland victory
2 min read
Boris Johnson is expected to visit the north of England after the Conservatives made major gains in Labour's traditional heartland.
The Tories won a swathe of seats which had been held by Labour for decades as the party secured an 80-seat Commons majority - their best performance since 1987.
Mr Johnson will tour those areas on Saturday as he kicks off his bid to bring "closure" to the Brexit debate and "let the healing begin" across the country.
While the Conservatives enjoyed their best election since the days of Margaret Thatcher, Labour suffered its worst election result since the 1930s.
Party leader Jeremy Corbyn said he did "everything he could", but said the election had been "taken over by Brexit".
Mr Corbyn said he would not immediately quit as leader yet because the "responsible thing to do is not to walk away from the whole thing", but said his replacement would be chosen in the New Year.
Meanwhile, Mr Johnson is expected to announce a small Cabinet reshuffle possibly as early as Monday.
MPs will return to Westminster on Tuesday to be sworn in before the Queen formally opens Parliament on Thursday.
The PM has also promised to reintroduce his Withdrawal Agreement Bill (WAB) to Parliament before Christmas, most likely next Friday.
The Bill would help pave the way for the UK to leave the EU on 31 January.
In a speech outside Downing Street on Friday, Mr Johnson thanked the lifelong Labour supporters who deserted Mr Corbyn's party and turned to the Conservatives, saying he would fulfil his promise to take the UK out of the EU on 31 January.
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