Conservative candidate Mike Freer has been elected in the constituency with the highest proportion of Jewish voters, Finchley and Golders Green.

Mr Freer finished with 21,688 votes, giving him a comfortable majority of 5,809.

The former Barnet Council leader had been a heavy favourite with the bookies, who had quoted him at odds as short of 1/20 to win in Margaret Thatcher’s former constituency.

His victory represented a 5.8 per cent swing from Labour to the Conservatives. The seat had been one of the Tory party’s key targets.

Labour’s Alison Moore was second with 15,879 and Laura Edge, for the Lib Dems, received 8,036 votes.

Mr Freer said he would work “tirelessly” for the constituency and paid tribute to outgoing Labour MP Rudi Vis, who stood down after announcing he was suffering from cancer.

All the results from the key constituencies on our Election 2010 page