Rishi Sunak has appeared to rule out holding a common election within the spring and stated his “working assumption” is to name a vote within the “second half of this year”.
The PM is under intense pressure to set a date for the next election, which must be held before January 2025. Speculation has been running rife in Westminster that he could go early, with Labour claiming plans for a May vote are the “worst stored secret in Parliament”.
It comes after a major poll in the Mirror this week revealed two thirds of Brits want an election by the summer. It found 31% of people want the vote to take place “as quickly as potential” while 19% said the spring and 16% opted for the summer.
But speaking on a visit to a youth centre in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, Mr Sunak said: “So my working assumption is we’ll have a common election within the second half of this yr and within the meantime I’ve acquired tons that I wish to get on with.” He declined to rule out a May election categorically but repeated his intentions to go for later in the year.
“I wish to maintain going, managing the economic system properly and chopping individuals’s taxes. But I additionally wish to maintain tackling unlawful migration,” Mr Sunak said. “So I’ve acquired tons to get on with and I’m decided to maintain delivering for the British individuals.”
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