LONDON, July 5. /TASS/. The opposition Labour Party has a solid lead in the July 4 parliamentary elections in the United Kingdom and is projected to win 410 seats in the parliament, according to unofficial results of a joint exit poll, conducted by the country’s three major television channels.

The results, published shortly after polling stations closed at 10:00 p.m. local time, show that the ruling Conservative Party is about to suffer a crushing defeat winning just 131 mandates (234 mandates less than during the 2019 election).

The Liberal Democrats are third with 61 seats, followed by right-wing populist Reform UK party (13 seats), the Scottish Nationalist Party (10 seats), and the Greens (2).

Other parties and independent candidates are projected to get 23 seats.

The results of the exit polls were slightly worse than a public survey, published in the run-up to the vote. It projected the Labour Party to get 431 mandates (up 229 from the 2019 polls), beating the 1997 record set by former leader and prime minister Tony Blair (419 mandates). The Conservative Party was forecasted to get 102 mandates.

The results were much better than expected for the Reform UK party led by Nigel Farage, who helped champion the UK’s departure from the European Union.

If these calculations are true, King Charles III will task Labour Party leader Keir Starmer with forming the government shortly after final results are announced on Friday. In this case, the Labour Party will return to power after 14 years in the opposition.

No major changes should be expected in the country’s foreign policy. All parties presented their electoral programs in mid-June and they featured no major differences in positions on, for example, the Ukrainian crisis or relations with Russia.

Commenting on the 136-page document, issued by the Labour Party, Russian Ambassador to the UK Andrey Kelin told TASS it contained "a standard set [of provisions]" with regard to Ukraine, including declarations of support to Ukraine and calls to set up a special tribunal for Russia, as well as calls to confiscate Russia’s assets with thier subsequent transfer to Ukraine.