The Conservatives are set to be the largest party in the Commons but just short of a majority, according to the general election exit poll.
The survey taken at polling stations across the UK suggests the Tories will get 316 MPs to Labour’s 239 when all the results have been counted.
It suggests the Lib Dems will get 10 MPs, the SNP 58, Plaid Cymru four, UKIP two and the Greens two.
The exit poll was conducted by NOP/MORI for the BBC, ITV and Sky.
Labour and the Lib Dems have both said they do not believe the exit poll result.
The first general election results have come in, with the last of the 650 expected on Friday afternoon.
The finishing line needed to form an absolute majority is 326, but because Sinn Fein MPs have not taken up seats and the Speaker does not normally vote, the finishing line has, in practice, been 323.
Labour has held on to three safe seats in Sunderland with increased majorities in early declarations, but there was a large swing to UKIP who came second ahead of the Conservatives in two seats, with the Lib Dems polling less than 1,000 votes and being beaten by the Greens.
If the exit poll is accurate, as it was in 2010, David Cameron could be on course to remain prime minister as the head of a minority government without the need for a coalition – although he might have to rely on the support of the DUP or the Lib Dems.
Even if Labour leader Ed Miliband was able to persuade the Lib Dems to join the SNP in backing a Labour government, he would not have the necessary numbers to get his legislative programme through Parliament in a Queen’s Speech.
