UK Politics

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailRishi Sunak has admitted there will be no Rwanda deportation flights before the general election.The morning after calling a snap contest on 4 July, the prime minister said asylum seekers will be deported to the east African nation only “if I am re-elected”.Pressed repeatedly on whether any deportation flights would take off before voters go to the polls, Mr Sunak repeatedly said the scheme would only get up and running after the election.Rishi Sunak has promised to get Rwanda flights in the air by the second week of July More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailA senior Conservative MP has said he won’t cancel his holiday plans for his party’s general election campaign despite admitting he will likely lose his seat.Steve Baker, MP for Wycombe, said he would stick to his plans after admitting he was widely expected to lose his seat in July.Prime minister Rishi Sunak launched the Conservative Party’s general election campaign in London on Wednesday, with the country set to head to the polls on 4 July.Follow live updates hereWhen challenged by LBC if he would be putting his plans on hold, Mr Baker said: “I’m not going to announce any of my plans, but I can tell you I’m going to keep to my plans. Steve Baker said he would be sticking to his holiday plans despite admitting it was likely he would lose his seat in July More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailFollowing months of speculation, Rishi Sunak has called a snap general election which will take place on July 4.Speaking outside of Downing Street, the prime minister announced that King Charles had granted his request to dissolve Parliament and promised to “fight for every vote” in the coming weeks.In his speech, Mr Sunak reflected on his time in office, saying: “In the last five years our country has fought through the most challenging times since the Second World War.“As I stand here as your prime minister, I can’t help but reflect that my first proper introduction to you was just over four years ago. I stood behind one of the podiums upstairs in the building behind me.Responding to the news, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said “it’s time for change,” adding “by the force of our democracy, power returns to you. A chance to change for the better your future.”The next seven weeks will see fervent campaigning from all parties, as they vie for votes up and down the country.To cast your vote on July 4, there’s a few things you will need to be aware of. Here’s everything you need to know about voting in the next general election.How to register to voteRegistering to vote can be done online or with a paper form.In England and Northern Ireland you can register to vote from 16, while in Wales and Scotland it’s 14. However, you must be 18 on polling day to vote in a general election.The deadline to register to vote in the July 4 general election is June 18 at 11.59pm, the Electoral Commission has confirmed.You must be a British, Irish or qualifying Commonwealth citizen, and also be resident at an address in the UK or registered as an overseas voter.You will cast a single vote for the person that you want to represent your constituency as a Member of Parliament (MP). They will either represent a political party or be standing as an independent candidate.MPs are elected using the first past the post voting system – whoever gets the most votes, wins. How to apply for a postal voteIf you’ll be away from home or abroad during the general election, you can apply for a postal vote. This means you will complete your ballot paper remotely, and post it back to your polling station.You can apply for a postal vote on the government’s website. You must first be registered to vote.You should receive your ballot paper by post around three weeks before polling day. It must be completed and sent back to the polling station in time for them to receive it no later than 10pm on polling day, so it is advisable to return it as soon as possible after you receive it.If you are unable to do so, you are allowed to take your completed postal vote directly to your local polling station before this deadline. You can hand in your own and up to five other people’s. It is an offence for a political campaigner to hand yours in if they do not know you personally.How to apply for a proxy voteA proxy vote is when someone votes on your behalf at the polling station. Similar to a postal vote, a proxy vote is for someone who is not able to physically be at the polling station on polling day.However, it is only allowed under certain circumstances.These are: being away on polling day, being registered as an overseas voter, having a medical issue or disability, and not being able to vote in person due to work or military service.You must apply for a proxy vote by 5pm, six working days before the election.However, if you are unable to vote on polling day due to circumstances such as a medical emergency or losing your photo ID, you can apply for an emergency proxy vote. You will have until 5pm on polling day to apply.What about voter ID?Following the introduction of new election laws in 2023, the July general election will be the first ever where people will be required to present a form of identification to vote.Many standard forms of ID are valid, including passports and driver’s licences. However, there are some omissions such as veteran cards, or travel passes for younger people.If you don’t possess an accepted form of ID, you can apply for a Voter Authority Certificate from the government. They are free and do not expire, but must be ordered with time to arrive before the election date.Read our guide to find out more about the new voter ID laws. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email Britain’s political party leaders were crisscrossing the country on Thursday, the first day of a six-week election campaign in which voters will decide whether to end the governing Conservatives’ 14 years in power.Prime Minister Rishi Sunak gambled on an earlier-than-expected July 4 election, arguing his party can give the country security in turbulent times. The main opposition Labour Party says it will bring much-needed change after years of political and economic turmoil under the Tories.“We will stop the chaos,” said Labour leader Keir Starmer, the current favorite to be Britain’s next prime minister. He said that if the Conservatives “get another five years, they will feel entitled to carry on exactly as they are. Nothing will change.”Sunak took many of his own lawmakers by surprise when he called the election Wednesday, in an ill-starred televised announcement outside 10 Downing St. that saw him drenched with rain and drowned out by protesters blasting a Labour campaign song.Most had expected a fall election after Sunak said repeatedly that the vote would be in the second half of the year. July 4 fits that bill, barely.Sunak, who plans to visiting England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in the next 48 hours, said Thursday that the election call showed “I’m prepared to take bold action.”“Uncertain times demand bold action in order to deliver security,” he told the BBC. “That’s what I will bring.”Others called the decision risky at best, foolish at worst.Elections in the U.K. have to be held no more than five years apart, but the prime minister can choose the timing within that period. Sunak, 44, had until December to name the date.Sunak fired the starting pistol on the day official figures showed U.K. inflation falling to 2.3%, allowing Sunak he had met a key pledge of getting rising prices under control. Inflation peaked at more than 11% in late 2022.Sunak’s center-right party has been in power since 2010, and last won an election in December 2019. Since then it has struggled to overcome a series of crises including an economic slump, ethics scandals and a revolving door of leaders in the past two years.Sunak took office in October 2022 following the disastrous tenure of Liz Truss, who lasted only 49 days after her economic policies rocked financial markets. Truss had been chosen by party members after Boris Johnson was ousted over a series of ethics scandals.The election will be held against the backdrop of a cost-of-living crisis and deep divisions over how to deal with migrants and asylum seekers making risky English Channel crossings from Europe.Starmer, a former chief prosecutor for England and Wales, is the current favorite. He has dragged the party towards the political center ground since being elected leader in 2020 to replace Jeremy Corbyn, a staunch socialist who led Labour to two election defeats.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.Many unknowns stand between either main party and a majority of seats in Parliament, including the different political landscape in Scotland, where the pro-independence Scottish National Party has dominated for years. The SNP is undergoing its own woes, and Labour hopes for a resurgence.The centrist Liberal Democrats also sometimes challenge Labour but mostly pose a threat to the Conservatives in south and southwest England.The hard-right Reform party — formerly the Brexit Party of Nigel Farage — could pose a threat to the Conservatives in parts of England’s former industrial heartland that the Conservatives won, often for the first time, in 2019. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailChina is providing Russia with lethal aid for use in its war against Ukraine, Grant Shapps has warned.The defence secretary suggested that British and US intelligence contradicts Beijing’s previous attempts to present itself as a moderating influence on Moscow and President Xi’s government is instead helping to arm Russia.Mr Shapps used a speech at the London Defence Conference to reveal China’s collaboration as he argued Nato needs to “wake up” and bolster defence spending alliance-wide.This follows the UK government committing to 2.5 percent of GDP by 2030. However, many Nato allies still do not meet the 2 percent minimum threshold.Mr Shapps said: “Today I can reveal that we have evidence that Russia and China are collaborating on combat equipment for use in Ukraine.”Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said lethal aid is flying from China to Russia (PA) More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailRishi Sunak has announced the general election will be held on 4 July and – as you might have guessed – this falls on a Thursday.Speaking in the pouring rain outside No 10 on Wednesday, the prime minister said: “Earlier today I spoke with his majesty the King to ask for the dissolution of Parliament. The King has granted this request and we will have a general election on the 4th of July.”While there is no actual law mandating that elections be held on Thursdays, this has been the custom for several decades now, and that typically includes voting in local as well as general elections and by-elections for individual seats.How long have UK elections been held on Thursdays?The last general election in the UK that wasn’t held on a Thursday took place on a Tuesday in October 1931. At that time, the day used for elections jumped around quite a bit, though it was always a weekday. The polling day was a Wednesday in November 1922 and a Thursday in December 1923. In October 1924, it was back to Wednesday, and then it was on a Thursday in May 1929. In 1935 the election was held on a Thursday, and it has been that way ever since.Why are general elections held on Thursdays in Britain?The choice of Thursday is more a tradition than a rule.It was likely driven by social and cultural factors such as avoiding overlap with paydays on Fridays or religious activities on Sundays. By holding the election in midweek, voters could be distanced from the influence of pubs or churches. In the past, Thursdays were market days in many towns and villages which meant more people were out and therefore likely to vote.There’s also a view that voting on a Thursday facilitates efficient ballot counting, with most results typically available by Friday morning, and allows for a smooth transition of power. The prime minister gets the entire weekend to pick their cabinet, settle into Downing Street if newly elected and prepare to brief civil servants by Monday morning.This schedule enables an orderly transition and minimises disruption to governance.There have, however, been calls in recent years to shift the voting day to the weekend – as is the case in many countries around the world. Professor Ailsa Henderson from the University of Edinburgh previously told the BBC a weekend vote would appeal to a lot of people. “Allowing it on more than one day – where one is a weekday and one is on the weekend – you will probably maximise your turnout.”But the idea has faced criticism, not least as it would entail a high cost of overtime for election staff. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailRishi Sunak has announced 4 July as the date for the next general election, giving just one week’s notice to the current parliament and firing the starting gun on campaigning. “Earlier today I spoke with his majesty the King to ask for the dissolution of Parliament. The King has granted this request, and we will have a general election on the 4th of July,” the prime minister said outside Downing Street on Wednesday.Here’s how major newspapers covered the surprise announcement.The IndependentWe start with this newspaper’s front page, which describes 4 July as “Judgement Day” for 14 years of Conservative rule, a period that has included “five prime ministers [and] countless scandals and resignations”. The GuardianThe Guardian led with the headline “Sunak’s big gamble”, and reported that the prime minister’s surprise announcement caused “alarm among senior ministers”.It said that ministers Esther McVey and Chris Heaton-Harris expressed concern about the election date, fearing voters didn’t yet feel economic improvement.Michael Gove, however, supported Mr Sunak. “Who dares wins,” he reportedly told his cabinet colleagues, invoking the SAS motto. “And you have dared, PM, and will win.”Daily MirrorIt led with the headline “Drown & Out” and pictured Mr Sunak walking back into No 10, soaking wet in the rain.The paper reported that Mr Sunak’s speech was overshadowed by protesters playing the New Labour anthem, “Things Can Only Get Better” at full blast. It added that with rain pouring down on him, the prime minister told voters: “I cannot and will not say that we have got everything right. No government should. But I am proud of what we have achieved together, the bold actions we have taken and I’m confident about what we can do in the future.”The Daily Mail“Now is the moment for Britain to choose its future,” the paper headlined its coverage, quoting Mr Sunak’s speech. It reported that Mr Sunak was “seizing the initiative” by calling a general election amid “Tory jitters”.The paper quoted the prime minister as saying that “voters must decide between two very different visions”.Financial TimesThe paper led with the headline “Sunak bets on July 4 election” and commented that Mr Sunak made a “big gamble” by calling the election while his party trailed Labour by over 20 points in polls.A former Tory minister described the decision as “bonkers”, noting: “Not a single colleague is saying they’re pumped up or ready”.The Daily Telegraph“Sunak gambles on snap poll” ran the headline on the broadsheet. “Things can only get wetter,” it commented with wordplay on the Labour anthem “Things Can Only Get Better”.In an opinion piece on the front page, associate editor Gordon Rayner said Mr Sunak’s message “came across loud and clear: that things have indeed got better under his leadership, and if Sir Keir Starmer becomes prime minister things can only get worse”.Mr Sunak “bet the house” by unexpectedly calling a general election, surprising his own cabinet, the paper reported.It said the prime minister “tried to position himself as the underdog”.The Metro noted that Mr Sunak ended “months of speculation” with this decision. It called the announcement a “bombshell” move.The i headlined its coverage “Judgement day: 4 July snap election for UK”. “Sunak gambles on snap general election – in attempt to catch Labour off guard,” it said.Daily Express“PM: I am fighting for our nation’s future” was the Daily Express headline. It quoted Sunak as saying that his party’s “economic credibility” won by bringing inflation down from over 11 per cent to 2.3 per cent and that “influenced his decision to take the fight to Labour”. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailIt is officially the launch of the Conservative Party’s general election campaign. I watch as exhausted security guards wave in Tory members filing towards the Excel Centre in the shadow of derelict shipping buildings and super yachts.Past the sniffer dogs and blacked-out Range Rovers, I am greeted by a cheery Tory press officer equipped with an umbrella – clearly learning his lesson from Rishi Sunak’s washout outside Downing Street. Mr Sunak’s first campaign rally has clearly been organised at late notice – with some Tory MPs reportedly feeling cajoled into attending. Past airport-style security we are led into the press room – with frustrated journalists pacing like tigers after being denied access to the Tory activists flocking in with bright new ‘Vote Conservative’ signs pressed into their hands.Meanwhile, Sky’s political anchor Darren McCaffrey is already complaining to a media handler, who explains there is not enough room for their camera in the cramped room hired for the prime minister’s speech.The anchor promises to make a “huge deal” about it and he later does – ending up being “forcibly ejected” by security live on camera during the launch.Reporter ‘forcibly removed’ from Sunak election campaign launch live on airAfter a 30-minute wait we pile into a sterile, sweltering room where dozens of Tory members holding the latest slogan from the latest election are assembled like a choir about to burst into You Can’t Always Get What You Want.The cleverly chosen smaller conference room appears fit to bursting for the cameras, with only around 80 activists there.Some bop their heads to the inoffensive yet interminable hold music being played repeatedly over the tannoy as they wait for their leader to arrive.The hype builds as Michael Gove comes in first to rapturous applause, followed by chancellor Jeremy Hunt and foreign secretary Lord David Cameron.But Mr Sunak’s opening host of choice is home secretary James Cleverly – I suspect, the funniest Conservative frontbencher he could find at such short notice. James Cleverly opens the Conservative Party rally More