Winning the Uxbridge by-election has given the beleaguered Tories the "fresh start" they never believed was possible, they said yesterday, while Labour has distanced itself from the defeat by claiming it never thought it could win at all.
Beaming from ear to ear yesterday, the Conservative Party leader, Mr William Hague, described the result as "an important rediscovery for the Tory Party. It is an extremely good result. It shows we are making a fresh start."
"We have got a lot of work to do, we have got a huge task ahead of us, but this result means that we have made a start and it means we have made a good start and means we can plan with confidence for the future," he said.
Mr John Randall, who has given the Tories something to smile about after the disaster of the general election in May, was understandably delighted.
"I knew how much we wanted something to cheer about and it gives me a great deal of pleasure to be able to provide that. I know what a morale-booster it will be," he said.
While it may be misplaced to view the by-election result as a complete turnaround of Tory fortunes, it has undoubtedly given the party a boost as MPs begin the summer recess today.
However, as the Tories celebrated their first by-election victory for eight years, Downing Street was keen to point out it did not believe Labour could have won the seat.
Earlier, the Minister for Trade and Competitiveness in Europe, Lord Simon, reacted bitterly to criticism that in retaining £2 million of British Petroleum shares he is guilty of a conflict of interest.
Writing in the London Times, Lord Simon defended himself against Tory claims of wrongdoing by insisting there was "no substance" in the charges.
The shares issue, he said, would be reviewed next year, when a further assessment of his "access to insider knowledge" will be made. Until that time, he argued, the government had advised him to place his non-BP holdings into a blind trust, "which I have done".
However, Mr Hague took time out from celebrating the Uxbridge by-election victory to express his frustration at the government's reaction to the issue.
Responding to reports that the government was considering libel action over the allegations against Lord Simon, Mr Hague said it was all "a bit over the top".
Meanwhile, the Commons Committee on Standards and Privileges has admitted it is virtually powerless to punish four former Tory MPs for "unacceptable behaviour", because they are no longer sitting MPs.
The powers to punish Mr Tim Smith, Sir Michael Grylls, Mr Michael Brown and Sir Andrew Bowden, were limited, the committee said. The former MPs were facing allegations of accepting "cash for questions".