Rishi Sunak held his first general election rally last night, just hours after his rain-soaked Downing Street speech.
AMN / LONDON
In a surprise move British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced an early national election for July 4. He made the announcement outside his Downing Street office, saying now is the moment for Britain to choose its future.
Voters across the United Kingdom will choose all 650 members of the House of Commons for a term of up to five years. The party that commands a majority in the Commons, either alone or in coalition, will form the next government and its leader will be prime minister. The announcement came the same day official figures showed inflation in the UK had fallen sharply to 2.3 percent, its lowest level in nearly three years.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the election was the “moment the country” had been waiting for. Starmer said that with “patience and determination” there was “so much pride and potential to unlock” in the UK Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney said holding the vote just when Scottish schools began their summer break was an “act of disrespect”