Chuka chucks his hat into the ring: Umunna announces Labour leadership bid with promise to win back England

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Labour's shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna announced he was running for Labour leader in a message released on Facebook this morning

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Mr Umunna was pictured with his girlfriend Alice Sullivan for the first time on Sunday ahead of an interview on the BBC's Andrew Marr show

Mr Umunna, who worked as a lawyer in London before entering Parliament, this morning claimed he wanted to 'lead the effort' to get Labour back into power in 2020 - dismissing claims it would take the party another 10 years to win back power.

It comes after a string of senior Labour figures, including Lord Mandelson and former chancellor Alistair Darling, ripped into the party's disastrous campaign.

Labour slumped to its worst defeat in almost 30 years in last week's election – finishing 99 seats behind the Conservatives, with 26 fewer MPs than even Gordon Brown managed in 2010. 

Speaking in Swindon, a key marginal where Labour failed to make any inroads at the election, Mr Umunna this morning insisted he could lead the party back to power within five years.