Rishi Sunak announces UK general election for Thursday 4 July
Rishi Sunak has pledged to “fight for every vote” as he announced an early UK general election for Thursday, 4 July.
In a rain-soaked speech outside 10 Downing Street, the Prime Minister expressed his determination to secure a fifth term for the Conservatives.
This unexpected decision has disrupted expectations of an autumn election, which could have potentially improved the Tories’ chances of narrowing the gap with Labour.
Sir Keir Starmer responded by stating it was “time for change” from “Tory chaos.”
Labour, which has been leading in national opinion polls, has asserted that its campaign is fully prepared.
Parliament will be suspended on Friday and will formally dissolve the following Thursday, initiating a five-week election campaign. This leaves only two days to pass any pending legislation, resulting in the abandonment of some government measures.
An October or November election date had been anticipated, but rumors began circulating early Wednesday after annual inflation was reported to have dropped to its lowest rate in nearly three years.
As Prime Minister’s Questions commenced in the Commons, the announcement’s timing remained uncertain. It wasn’t until just after 17:00 BST that the first July election since 1945 was confirmed.
In his Downing Street announcement, the Prime Minister highlighted the falling inflation figures, indicating his intention to campaign on economic recovery following a period of rising living costs. He emphasized that the drop in inflation and the UK’s recent emergence from recession demonstrated that his plans and priorities were effective.
But his statement did not go entirely to plan, as he battled worsening rain and activists blasting out the New Labour anthem Things Can Only Get Better over a loudspeaker.
There was confusion in at least some parts of the Conservative Party about why Mr. Sunak had decided to call the election sooner than had been widely expected.
“I just don’t understand it,” one Tory MP told the BBC. “The economy is improving. Why not give that more time to bed in?”
One senior minister was annoyed that Mr Sunak had given his speech in the driving rain.
“If the whole point was to remind the public that he was Mr Furlough, why not do the speech inside from the same briefing room?”
