Image source, PA Media

Both Keir Starmer and the his newly-elected deputy leader Lucy Powell made mention of yesterday's loss for Labour in the Caerphilly by-election.

Here's a reminder of what happened:

The party saw a historic defeat at a by-election in the Welsh Parliament.

Plaid Cymru's Lindsay Whittle was declared the winner of the Caerphilly seat in the Senedd yesterday - before that, Labour had held the constituency for 100 years.

Keir Starmer said he was "deeply disappointed" at the loss. His party finished third after Reform UK.

With this drubbing at the forefront of their minds on day one, the new deputy leader - sometimes known as the party's "campaigner-in-chief" - will be all too aware of the challenges they face.

Back on the stage, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood says the ocus now turns to next year's local elections in May.

She says that Powell will now start "knocking on doors" straight away.

With that, she thanks the members in the room and the event ends with applause as Starmer, Powell and Phillipson leave.

Starmer moves on to yesterday's by-election defeat in Caerphilly, where Labour lost their seat to Plaid Cymru.

• For context, Labour suffered its first parliamentary defeat in Caerphilly for 100 years as Plaid Cymru claimed victory in the Welsh Parliament by-election.

He states that decline, grievance and division can only be answered with renewal - something the people of Scotland, Wales and England must be offered next year.

He urges his party to unite and keep our focus to win "the defining battle for the soul of our nation".

Powell will do just that, he proudly tells the audience.

Starmer notes how the newly-appointed deputy leafer has made clear that she wants to use her position to drive Labour forward.

After thanking Powell and Phillipson again, and emphasising Labour's need to come together to fight for Britain, he ends his speech and embraces both candidates.

After exchanging an embrace with Phillipson, Powell passes the mic to PM Keir Starmer.

He thanks both candidates for their work, adding that the party is extremely lucky to have had the choice of two strong, committed women as their deputy leader.

Starmer says he looks foward to working with Powell, a "proud defender" of Labour values.

He urges that his party need to come together to defend British values- like decency, compassion, respect for difference, and pride for all the country's people.

"We're facing opponents who want to wage war against all that," he says.

Powell continues to emphasise Labour values, saying they link party members to "decent" and "moderate" people.

She says, though, that people don't feel part of the movement right now, "and we have to change that".

Unity and loyalty comes from collective purpose not command and control, she adds.

Powell then references the "hugely important" local elections in May, and says the result in Caerphilly this week shows the challenge Labour faces.

On this note, she says that her party doesn't have to focus on beating Reform, but instead should prioritise Labour's goals.

She then rounds off her speech to applause as pledges to serve her party and her country.

• Starmer 'deeply disappointed' at Caerphilly by-election defeat

Image source, PA Media

Powell says people feel that the current Labour government is not being bold enough in delivering the change they have promised.

"I will be your ally in that fight," she tells Starmer - who is in the audience.

She claims Labour have let "Farage and his ilk run away with it" - rejecting the Reform UK leader's attribution to immigration for issues in the UK.

She notes that deep seated inequalities have widened which need addressing, which is how Labour will reunite its voters.

"Because that's what Labour governments do and have always done," she states.

Powell also recounts how Labour's history began in her hometown of Manchester.

Her politics have always been influenced by her being Mancunian and Labour supporter, she says.

Powell then pays tribute to Angela Rayner, joking that the former deputy leader is known for her shoes, "and she's left some very big ones for me to fill today".

The new deputy leader then addresses Starmer as she describes how "division and hate" are on the rise and says the desire for change is "palpable".

She encourages the Labour party to step forwards and take this on.

She tells the PM that she's here to help him in this fight as deputy leader, emphasising the need to offer hope and give a stronger sense of purpose and Labour values.

Powell is beginning her speech, after being welcomed to stage with an applause from the audience.

She says it is a huge privilege to be deputy leader of Labour, thanking those who voted for her.

She vows to work everyday to repay their trust.

She also pays tribute to Phillipson as a person of dedication and real labour values. She says she is looking forward to working with the minister moving forward.

As we've just reported, Lucy Powell has been announced as Labour's new deputy leader.

Powell received a total of 87,407 votes.

Her rival Bridget Phillipson received 73,536 votes.

Image source, PA Media

Lucy Powell has been elected deputy leader of the Labour Party.

Shabana Mahmood has just made the announcement in front of both candidates and the UK PM Keir Starmer.

She will succeed Angela Rayner, whose resignation sparked the leadership contest in September.

We'll bring you more on this shortly - and a crunch of the numbers - stay with us.

Image source, UK Pool

In the next few minutes we will find out who will be appointed to the role of deputy leader of the Labour Party.

The contest is between Bridget Phillipson and Lucy Powell.

The announcement will be made by Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood.

You can follow along by clicking Watch live at the top of this page, stick with us.

Chris Mason
Political editor, reporting from outside the venue

Hello from a back street in south London.

Anyone would think the Labour Party is rather keen on avoiding too much fuss today.

Us reporters are pursuing that long standing journalistic tradition of hanging around outside - because the party isn’t letting us in to watch this election result in person.

Thankfully we have persuaded them to allow a broadcast camera team in, so at least we can watch on our phones outside and you can see it for yourselves too.

The two candidates have arrived in the last half hour - ignoring our questions.

The prime minister is here too - I wonder if he now regrets sacking Lucy Powell from his cabinet, the favourite to win today.

This very contest is only happening because of the first bump of the autumn the government had to deal with - the resignation of Angela Rayner, the previous deputy leader.

Her resignation tempted the prime minister to conduct a wider reshuffle - including sacking Lucy Powell.

Now here we are seven weeks on - the result imminent.

We'll bring you the result right here on this page as soon as we get it. You'll be able to follow along by clicking Watch live at the top of this page.

Image source, PA Media

We'll shortly be hearing the result of who will become the new Labour deputy prime minister.

As a reminder the the two candidates vying for the role are Bridget Phillipson and Lucy Powell - let's have another quick rundown of who they are.

Who is Lucy Powell?

She is MP for Manchester Central and former Leader of the House of Commons. She was sacked from her Commons leadership role in a reshuffle that followed Angela Rayner's resignation.

Powell says Starmer never gave a reason for the sacking, and her position outside Cabinet has led to support from members who are unhappy with the prime minister's leadership.

She says she would be a "full-time deputy" if elected and has criticised the government's attempts to cut disability benefits and winter fuel payments.

Image source, Jeff Overs/BBC

Who is Bridget Phillipson?

She is the education secretary and MP for Houghton and Sunderland South, and also holds a role as minister for women and equalities.

Her status as Cabinet insider has led to her being seen as Starmer's favoured candidate.

Phillipson has pitched herself as a voice for members "at the heart of government", and says she would focus on uniting the party ahead of the May local elections. Phillipson has also said she has been the victim of sexist briefings against her.

Iain Watson
Political correspondent, reporting from the venue

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has just arrived at the venue.

This is the contest he didn’t want but was forced on him when Angela Rayner resigned last month.

He appointed David Lammy as deputy prime minister but the party post of deputy leader is one which is chosen not by him but by the members.

He intends to go campaigning with the victor immediately after the result is announced in a show of unity.

But if the woman he sacked from the cabinet last month - Lucy Powell - wins, that is likely to suggest the rank and file believes there is room for improvement in his leadership.

Iain Watson
Political correspondent, reporting from the venue

A smiling Bridget Phillipson has arrived at the venue to hear the deputy leadership result.

She has argued that having a seat at the cabinet table will help her better represent members’ views to those who take the big decisions.

She has also said that the deputy leader role should have campaigning at its heart and she is best placed to take on the challenge of Reform UK.

We don’t have long to wait to find out if the party membership agree - though a victory for her would be in defiance of the polls.

Image source, Labour Party/Youtube

The two deputy leadership hopefuls had just over a month to get their messages across.

Here's a quick look at the main arguments in their campaigns:

Lucy Powell said:

• She would be a "full time deputy" who would be able to "wrestle back the megaphone" and set the terms of the debate as the party's "campaigner in chief"
• It wasn't possible to "sugar-coat" big errors, adding that voter disillusionment needed to be addressed
• The party “must change how we are doing things to turn things around”, noting they had been "losing support to all sides"

Bridget Phillipson said:

• She is as a voice for the membership inside the heart of the cabinet
• The party should focus on "the 90% of things it got right" - including family hubs and workers' rights
• She was proud of her campaign to "unite our party, deliver the change our country needs and to focus our efforts on beating our opponents"

Iain Watson
Political correspondent, reporting from the venue

Lucy Powell has just arrived at the venue where the result of the deputy leadership contest will be announced.

Polling suggests she is the favourite.

As someone who has said she won’t be afraid to tell the existing leadership if it’s getting things wrong, a victory for her is likely to symbolise restlessness and discontent amongst some party members.

That being those who are concerned that Labour is still behind in the polls, despite winning a landslide victory last year - along with those who feel that some of the government’s difficulties are self inflicted.

Image source, EPA/UK Parliament

Following Angela Rayner's resignation, an all-female line-up was announced to stand for deputy leader.

Bridget Phillipson and Lucy Powell are the two remaining candidates - but who else put their name in the ring?

• Emily Thornberry: The foreign affairs committee chair withdrew after securing 13 out of the 80 backers required before the deadline
• Alison McGovern: The housing secretary pulled out of the contest early on, after conceding she didn't have the required support from MPs - she has since backed Phillipson
• Paula Barker: The Liverpool Wavertree representative in Parliament decided to back Lucy Powell for deputy leader after failing to secure enough nominations
• Bell Ribeiro-Addy: The MP for Clapham and Brixton Hill was the first to formally enter the contest, but stepped back on 11 September after failing to secure nominations

Iain Watson
Political correspondent, reporting from outside the venue

The preparations for the announcement of the Labour deputy leadership result are under way at a central London venue.

Lucy Powell - who was sacked from the cabinet in last month’s reshuffle - has argued that she will be the voice of the members and will speak truth to power.

She has highlighted mistakes Labour has made in government - such as the handling of the winter fuel and welfare cuts and has suggested that the leadership need to listen to a wider range of voices.

The Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has said that she will represent members more effectively because she still has a seat at the top table.

Her supporters have suggested a Powell victory would be more divisive as any disagreements are more likely to happen in public rather than behind closed doors - something which Lucy Powell has denied.

Unlike cabinet ministers who are chosen by the prime minister, the deputy leader is chosen by the membership and will have their own mandate.