Election 2015: Alex Salmond and Boris Johnson win seats

The former leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) Alex Salmond and London mayor and senior Conservative figure Boris Johnson both won election to Westminster comfortably in a glowing night for their respective parties.

Salmond, who lost a referendum for independence in September, saw his party bounce back by grabbing almost all of the seats contested by the SNP.

"Ladies and gentlemen, there is a rough wind blowing through the great glen of Scotland this morning. There is a swing underway in Scotland the like of which has not been seen in recorded politics, it is twice the level of any swing recorded in Scotland or indeed across the United Kingdom since electoral records began in 1835. It is an extraordinary statement of intent from the people of Scotland. The Scottish lion has roared this morning across the country," he told supporters after his victory in the Gordon constituency.

In the London constituency of Uxbridge, London mayor Boris Johnson swept into parliament in a safe Conservative seat and will have to leave his job as mayor in a year as a result. Many believe Johnson has his sights on eventually succeeding David Cameron as leader of the party once Cameron serves out what is looking to be his second and final term in office. Johnson has refused to reveal his political ambitions and praised Cameron's work in charge of the party.

"My friends, the people of Britain after a long and exhausting campaign have finally spoken and I don't think we need any fancy constitutional experts to tell us what they were trying to say. I think they have decisively rejected any attempt to take this country back to the 1970s," Johnson said.

A Conservative victory means Britain is likely to face a historic in-out European Union referendum within two years, something Cameron has promised to deliver if re-elected.