The party's share of the vote in the constituency seats dropped from 14.8 per cent in 2007 to 10.6 per cent in 2011 and they fared even worse on the regional vote, falling from 11.7 per cent to a paltry 8 per cent.
He said that the number of well-wishers who turned up outside the church in the prime minister's Co Durham constituency showed the ceremony was something people "wanted to share".