UK PM Sunak To Announce 'Snap' General Election On July 4th

With polls suggesting a heavy defeat, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has announced a snap general election will take place on July 4th.

The PM is set to name the early summer polling date in a Downing Street statement imminently, according to widespread reports from Westminster.

It comes after the Tory leader declared inflation was "back to normal" in a "major milestone" for the country, following official figures showing inflation slowed to 2.3% in April.

Additional reasons why Sunak may have decided today is the right time to call an election include the fact that the economy grew 0.6% in the three months to March, also technically meeting a pledge, and his Rwanda legislation has made it through parliament.

However, all is not well at all.

As The FT reports, polls now puts the Conservatives on 23 per cent, matching the nadir of Liz Truss’s brief premiership in 2022.

Deputy PM Oliver Dowden in particular has been pushing for a summer election, she says.

"On the back these good inflation figures, the International Monetary Fund upgrading the growth forecasts, the UK coming out of recession, the prime minister looks like he is going to go in the summer."

Earlier today, Sunak said during PMQs:

"There is, Mr Speaker - spoiler alert - there is going to be a general election in the second half of this year.

"At that moment, the British people will in fact see the truth about the honourable gentleman opposite me (Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer), because that will be the choice at the next election, Mr Speaker - a party that is not able to say to the country what they would do, a party that would put at risk our hard-earned economic stability, or the Conservatives that are delivering a secure future for our United Kingdom."

In summary: For the Conservatives who believe that it is right to go earlier, the argument would be that things aren't going to get much better.