On Wednesday, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called a national election on July 4. He said Britons would be able to choose their future. Ending months of speculation as to when he would call a national poll, Sunak (44) stood outside his Downing Street office in pouring rain and declared he was calling the election earlier than expected.
“Now is the moment for Britain to choose its future,” he said.
Over the next few weeks, he will fight for every vote and will earn trust, said Sunak.
In an attack on Labour party, he said that Starmer, contrarily, always took the easy way out and had no agenda. The future can only be uncertain with them, he stressed.
Less than two years ago, he took office and since then has struggled to define what he stands for, becoming increasingly frustrated that what he sees as his successes have failed to be appreciated.
Sunak and his government blame Labour for being poised to increase taxes if in government. Labour blames the government for 14 years of economic mismanagement, leaving individuals worse off.
Labour said before the announcement it was more than ready for a poll.
Last week, Starmer kicked off his party’s election campaign by pledging to “rebuild Britain”. In the opinion polls, Labour party is running about 20 percentage points ahead of Sunak’s Conservatives.