David Cameron congratulates Chloe Smith MP and brands Labour's Norwich North campaign "utterly despicable"

David Cameron has just paid a flying visit to Norwich North - his 7th visit in recent weeks - to congratulate the newly-elected MP Chloe Smith and reflect on the result. The following is not verbatim:

He thanked Chloe and the Conservative campaign for a positive, active and brilliant campaign. He paid tribute to the new MP for fighting in a "positive way" on "the issues that matter" and for pursuing an agenda on MPs' expenses that was open, transparent and honest.

He said Chloe is "a credit to the Conservative Party" and "exactly the sort of MP I want to see in the House of Commons for the Conservative Party".

Mr Cameron said that the whole Conservative Party could be proud of its campaign, unlike Labour, whose campaign was "utterly despicable": look at what they said, untruth after untruth with untrue claims about Tory plans to scrap free pensioners' TV licences and free travel or the pensions credit.

"This Prime Minister talks about courage and a moral compass: where was the courage in not even coming to the by-eleciton? And where is the moral compass in allowing a campaign of lies and half truths about your opponents?"

He said he hoped Labour took the lesson that if you try and scare people and tells untruths that it doens't do damage to them but it does damage to you.

With less than 1 in 5 people in a previously Labour-held constituency voting Labour, it was clear that this country has had enough of "Gordon Brown's claims about Tory cuts and Labour investments and all the rest of that rubbish".

This was only the 2nd time a Conservative victory has been had in a Labour seat in the last 27 years and suggested that people want change in their county and their society.

The party that was frank and open and said we were living beyond our means won the campaign; the party that said we're going to go on spending even when we can't afford it lost this campaign.

Jonathan Isaby