Ed Miliband: I'll get Cameron out

Labour's new leader has pledged to work "every hour of every day" to remove David Cameron from Downing Street.

Ed Miliband received rapturous applause when he attended an evening reception in Manchester held by Labour's London region, just hours after winning the dramatic leadership contest.

He defeated David Miliband by just 1.3 per cent, winning a wafer-thin majority of 50.65 per cent compared to his brother's 49.35 per cent.

He paid tribute to his brother David for the "gracefulness and generosity of spirit" he had shown in defeat, adding: "He deserves all our support and he will be a vital part of our party."

Mr Miliband said unity was the most important goal for Labour in the future, warning: "We know enough about the last decade to know there must be no more factionalism in the party.

He added: "My responsibility is to work every hour of every day, with a united team, to get David Cameron out of Downing Street as soon as possible."

The shadow energy secretary appears to have benefited from a last-minute surge of support before voting in the postal ballot closed on Wednesday, and was installed as bookies' favourite with less than 24 hours to go after trailing David throughout the four-month contest to find a successor to Gordon Brown.

David Miliband won a majority of support from Labour's MPs at Westminster, but crashed to defeat due to Ed's dominance among trade unions and grassroots activists.

Ed Miliband secured the crown in the fourth round of counting in Manchester, after the votes of eliminated candidates Diane Abbott, Andy Burnham and Ed Balls were redistributed to take his support past the crucial 50 per cent mark.