Nick Clegg has been elected leader of the Liberal Democrats and declared he wants a "new beginning" for his party.

He saw off rival Chris Huhne by 20,988 votes to 20,477, after a two-month contest sparked by the resignation of Sir Menzies Campbell.

There was no official full recount although party sources said "bundles" of votes were double-checked, reflecting the closeness of the contest.

The narrow margin of victory surprised Westminster, where most observers had regarded Mr Clegg as the out-and-out front-runner.

He said: "We must start acting like the growing political force that we are.

"I want today to mark the beginning of a real change in Britain. The beginning of Britain's liberal future."

He also told cheering supporters at London's St Martin's Lane Hotel that the Conservatives and Labour were "mutating into each other".

He added that it was a time of "unprecedented opportunity" for the Lib Dems.

Mr Huhne accepted his defeat gracefully and promised to stand by their new leader.

He said: "I look forward to participating as part of Nick's team to make sure the party goes from strength to strength."

Mr Clegg in turn offered him a "very big role" in the party's future and said he wanted to name his frontbench team as quickly as possible.

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