CONSERVATIVE David Jones was celebrating beginning a second term as Clwyd West MP this morning.

The constituency had been cited by Labour as a main target as they looked to reclaim the seat Gareth Thomas had lost to Mr Jones by less than 200 votes in 2005.

But they were to be left disappointed as Mr Jones, 58, strengthened his grip by increasing his majority to more than 6,000, after claiming more than 42 per cent of the vote.

Mr Jones was elected with 15,833 votes, leaving him clear of Labour’s Donna Hutton who registered 9,414.

In his victory speech, Mr Jones said: “It has been a privilege to represent the people of Clwyd West during the last parliament and I assure them I will not let them down in the coming parliament.”

Mr Jones pledged to continue to give strong, effective representation to the people of his constituency at Westminster and to be in tune with the concerns of his constituents.