UK opposition chief Corbyn says 'sorry' for election wipeout

Britain's main opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn apologised Sunday for waging a disastrous campaign that handed Prime Minister Boris Johnson a mandate to take the UK out of the EU next month.

But the veteran socialist defended his far-left platform and blamed the media for helping relegate his century-old party to its worst performance since before World War II.

"I will make no bones about it. The election result on Thursday was a body blow for everyone who so desperately needs real change in our country," Corbyn wrote in the Sunday Mirror newspaper.

"I wanted to unite the country that I love but I'm sorry that we came up short and I take my responsibility for it."

Thursday's snap general election turned into a re-run of the 2016 EU membership referendum in which Johnson championed the Brexit cause.

Johnson now commands an 80-vote majority in the 650-seat House of Commons -- a margin last enjoyed by the late Tory icon Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s.

A sombre but combative Corbyn said Friday that he will step aside once Labour completes a period of "reflection" about its mistakes. 

The party is expected to have a new leader in place before England votes yet again in local polls in...