THE Labour by-election loss is a “temporary blip” says Huddersfield’s MP.
Barry Sheerman said it was more than two decades since the Conservatives last took a seat off Labour in a by-election.
His comments came after the Conservatives took the former Labour Crewe and Nantwich seat at Thursday’s by-election.
Mr Sheerman said: “It’s a temporary blip. Perhaps after 25 years it was about time the Tories won a by-election.
“Perhaps we shouldn't begrudge them one finally.”
Mr Sheerman believes the Labour Party need to concentrate on continuing serving the country.
He added: “A General Election is a very different thing and I am confident we can take the lead with that.
“We were elected to do a job and represent people and that’s our focus.
“It has always been mine.”
The Crewe and Nantwich Tory candidate, Edward Timpson, took 49.5% of the vote, as against Labour’s 30.6%.
Conservative leader David Cameron said the party’s first by-election gain since 1982 marked the end of New Labour.
But Prime Minister Gordon Brown said the result showed his task was to tackle people’s concerns about rising prices.
But a survey suggests that twice as many people think Mr Cameron would make a better Prime Minister than Mr Brown.
Of those questioned, 46% thought Mr Cameron would be the best leader, 23% backed Mr Brown and 7% backed Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg.
In this month’s local elections Kirklees’s Conservatives gained two seats and kept control of the council.
