British Prime Minister Theresa May could win a landslide majority of 114 seats in a June 8 election, The Times newspaper reported, citing YouGov polling data.
Standing outside her Downing Street office, May said she had decided "with reluctance" that an election was needed to secure political unity and stability as Britain negotiates its way out of the European Union. Let's hope she uses the campaign to offer a vision for a competitive Britain that meets the post-Brexit challenge.
She said parliament would be asked to vote today to decide on whether or not to hold an election.
In 2015, after protracted negotiations, David Cameron agreed to take part in only one live TV debate, which included six other leaders - those of Labour, the Liberal Democrats, Ukip, Greens, SNP and Plaid Cymru.
Responding to Mrs May's speech yesterday, Mr Corbyn said he "welcomed" the opportunity to show voters "how Labour will stand up for the people of Britain".
A number of senior Tory MPs and ministers came to her defence yesterday, describing her decision as "brave" and the "best way" to provide certainty during Brexit negotiations.
In a call to political arms, she said: "It doesn't have to be their way".
French police foil 'imminent' terror attack after explosives discovered
France has been on high alert since a string of terror attacks that began in 2015, which have killed more than 230 people. A state of emergency, put in place after the Paris attacks in late 2015, has been extended until July of this year.
Before holding the early election, May must win the support of two-thirds of the parliament in a vote on Wednesday, which looked certain after Labour and the Liberal Democrats said they would vote in favour.
Professor John Curtice suggested the Prime Minister would need a lead greater than ten points to get the large government majority she wants.
That would make it easier for her to ignore opposition calls for a softer European Union exit - making compromises to retain some benefits of membership - and to face down hard-liners within her own party who want a no-compromise "hard Brexit" that many economists fear could be devastating. "They underestimate our determination to get the job done and I am not prepared to let them endanger the security of millions of working people across the country". I wrote in this paper six weeks ago that the case for an early general election was very strong indeed, and the arguments for that have only become stronger since then.
The world of politics has been given quite a stir with Theresa May's shock announcement of an early general election in June.
Sturgeon said Tuesday that May was seeking "to crush the voices of people who disagree with her".
It sent the pound up 0.1% against the United States dollar to 1.257, recovering from a 0.3% drop just an hour earlier.
The Conservatives now have a majority of just 17 from the last election in 2015 and some of their MPs have indicated they could vote against the government on key aspects of Brexit legislation.
Comments