Brexit forever? How May's failed election gamble changes Brexit

She had no real need to call this election, but she did, wagering on a win that would enhance her majority in parliament, crush the Labour opposition, and let the negotiators in Brussels know that they were dealing with a prime minister who had the mother of all mandates to exact from Europe the most favorable exit terms.

Instead, it looks like the United Kingdom will have a hung parliament. "Whatever the results, the Conservative party will remain the party of stability".

With 645 out of 650 seats declared, the Conservatives had won 317 seats.

Theresa May is to leave her most senior Cabinet team in place after her General Election gamble backfired disastrously.

It's a huge embarrassment for May, who called the early election with the aim of shoring up support for the Conservatives ahead of the country's crucial Brexit negotiations.

That was also the broadly desired outcome in Brussels, where leaders believed that a stronger May would be better able to cut compromise deals with the European Union and resist pressure from hardline pro-Brexit factions in her party which have called for Britain to reject European Union terms and, possibly, walk out without a deal.

"I have just been to see Her Majesty the Queen and I will now form a government - a government that can provide certainty and lead Britain forward at this critical time for our country", she said after returning from Buckingham Palace to her Downing Street office in London.

The opposition Labour Party meanwhile has had a field day, gaining 31 seats as of 0700 GMT (3pm Singapore time) and almost wiping out the Tories in London.

A dramatic election night saw several "big beasts" lose their seats - with former deputy prime minister Nick Clegg the main casualty, losing his Sheffield Hallam seat to Labour's 25-year-old candidate Jared O'Mara. The pound tumbled by close to 2% after an initial BBC exit poll, which predicted a hung parliament.

However, even with all parties on board, it would still only be able to form a minority government, which would have even more difficulty than the Tories in putting together a legislative programme. Having won all but three of Scotland's 59 seats in the British parliament in 2015, their share of the vote fell sharply and they lost seats to the Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats. Because make no mistake, her miscalculation in calling the snap election ranks as one of the biggest political misjudgements we have ever seen in British politics.

They had hoped Mrs May, with a healthy majority under her belt, would be a strong negotiator, liberated from the strictures of the Brexit ultras in her party.

Then, attacks in Manchester and London that killed a total of 30 people brought the campaign to a halt - twice, sent a wave of anxiety through Britain and forced May to defend the government's record on fighting terrorism.

Neither the Conservative nor Labour party has enough MPs to claim a majority in Parliament, which means that a coalition will be needed for either Theresa May or Jeremy Corbyn to form a stable Government.

Writing in The Guardian, she added: "I got it wrong on Corbyn".

Before her defeat, May said she wanted to negotiate the divorce and the future trading relationship with the European Union before Britain leaves in March 2019, followed by what she calls a phased implementation process to give business time to prepare for the impact of the divorce.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn started this campaign with a deficit in the polls of around 20 points, and his chances written off by most experts, political commentators and the press.

That did not help May, who in her previous role as interior minister for six years had overseen cuts in the number of police officers. Democratic Unionist Party leader Arlene Foster told British media that contacts will be made over the weekend.