TORY new boy Tobias Ellwood enjoyed a comfortable victory to secure the coveted Bournemouth East seat last night.

Liberal Democrat hopes of making a historic inroad in Bournemouth fell by the wayside as the perceived marginal seat turned into a relatively easy win for the Conservatives.

The victory is an early wedding present for Mr Ellwood, who marries his fiancee, Hannah Ryan, in two months time.

And he joked: "At least I don't have to write 'unemployed' on my wedding certificate now!"

The retirement of long-serving MP David Atkinson sparked a fierce fight for the seat, with Liberal Democrat candidate and Bournemouth councillor Andrew Garratt convinced he could secure a historic victory for his party.

With the Conservatives nursing a majority of just 3,434, the Liberal Democrats ran an intensive, high-profile campaign.

They also made an unashamed plea to Labour voters, urging them to switch allegiances and keep the Conservatives out.

But this tactic failed miserably, with Labour registering a creditable 7,191 votes, even more than they secured in 2001.

Mr Ellwood's 16,925 votes translated into a 5,244 majority over Mr Garratt - an increase of almost 2,000.

He said: "We worked very hard on a very personal, very local campaign. I think the success of that is reflected in the result.

"David did a wonderful job for 28 years, that is a very hard act to follow. He certainly made his mark on Bournemouth East."

He said one of his priorities would be to press for fairer funding for Bournemouth schools.

"The important thing for me is education," he said. "This was supposed to be one of Tony Blair's priorities and there is more money being put into education but none of it is coming to the south west.

"Headteachers should not have to put out the begging bowl to parents to pay for staff and supplies."

Cllr Garratt said he was "obviously disappointed" to poll 11,681 votes but said he would be keen to stand for election again.

"We've worked very hard to put across some very positive messages for the people of Bournemouth East, like getting a fair deal for older people, a fairer funding formula for local schools and of course, to finally kill off the council tax.

"This is still very clearly a Liberal Democrat and Conservative marginal seat. In 2009 or 2010, it will still be fought between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats and if my party wishes me to fight it again, I will do so."

Bournemouth East

Tobias Ellwood (Con) 16,925

Andrew Garratt (Lib Dem) 11,681

David Stokes (Lab) 7,191

Thomas Collier (UKIP) 1,802

Majority 3,434 - Hold