Mike Freer sees off competition from Lib Dem hopeful Luciana Berger to hold Finchley and Golders Green

Luciana Berger has failed to pull off a shock victory in Finchley and Golders Green for the Liberal Democrats in a bitterly disappointing night for the party.

Ms Berger quit the Labour Party in February with a stinging attack on leader Jeremy Corbyn’s failure to tackle anti-Semitism within the ranks.

She mounted a challenge in the north London constituency against Conservative MP Mike Freer, pushing Labour into third place, but ultimately fell more than 6,000 votes short of victory.

Speaking after the result, Ms Berger, 38, said it was a “mighty shame” that Labour had shunned talks over collaborating with the Lib Dems to beat the Conservatives, and took a fresh swipe at her former party over anti-Semitism.

She said Labour remains “mired in racism” and the continuing controversies had led to tonight result, handing a thumping majority to the Tories.

Victorious Tory MP Mr Freer, who has held the seat since 2010, paid tributes to his opponents, and said he had written to Ms Berger to offer his support when she had quit Labour.

“I’m sure you will return to Parliament one day and continue your public service”, he said.

Ms Berger, 38, was one of the leading voices against anti-Semitism within the Labour Party, and criticised the “toxic” environment when she eventually quit in February.

She gave up her seat in Liverpool to fight in Finchley and Golders Green, a constituency once represented by Margaret Thatcher which includes a large Jewish population.

Throwing herself into the campaign, she praised the Lib Dems as a “breath of fresh air” but polled 17,600 votes, short of Mr Freer’s total of 24,162.

Labour’s Ross Houston came in third place with 13,347.

The result means Mr Freer’s majority has been boosted to more than 6,000.