The general election is likely to take place in the autumn, Rishi Sunak has revealed as he defies pressure for a May poll.
The Prime Minister said: “My working assumption is we’ll have a general election in the second half of this year and in the meantime I’ve got lots that I want to get on with.”
Asked if he would totally rule out an election in May, Mr Sunak replied: “I want to keep going, managing the economy well and cutting people’s taxes. But I also want to keep tackling illegal migration. So, I’ve got lots to get on with and I’m determined to keep delivering for the British people.”
Labour and the Liberal Democrats had been pushing for an election in early May, to coincide with local elections in much of England.
Some Conservatives had also called for a May election to ease the logistical problems that would come with having to hold two separate campaigns over 2024.
But the Prime Minister appears to have concluded that his best chance of pulling off a turnaround in the opinion polls is to wait for longer on the assumption that cost-of-living pressures will continue to ease between now and the date of the election.
Speculation about polling day is now likely to centre around October and November – although an election in the autumn would risk clashing with the autumn conferences which are traditionally a major money-spinner for political parties, and may also end up coinciding with the US presidential election on 5 November.
Sir Keir Starmer told the BBC in response: “We are ready for a general election. I think the country is ready for a general election. The Prime Minister has hinted without setting a date that it might be later this year. Why can’t he set a date? Him squatting in Downing Street for months on end, dithering and delaying while the country wants change.”
Lib Dem leader Ed Davey added: “Rishi Sunak has bottled it and is running scared of a May general election. Squatter Sunak is holed up in Downing Street, desperately clinging on to power rather than facing the verdict of the British people.”
Speaking in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire in his first public appearance of the year, Mr Sunak sought to draw a dividing line between the Conservatives and Labour on tax.
He told a group of voters: “This Saturday, a big tax cut is coming in, every working person across the country is going to benefit from it. It’s worth £450 to an average person in work on the average salary.
“We want to do more because as we manage the economy responsibly, we can cut your taxes, give you and your family peace of mind, immediate relief from some of the challenges you’re facing and confidence that the future is going to be better for you and your children. That is the journey that we’re on.”
In his own New Year speech on Thursday, Keir Starmer suggested that Labour would not seek to cut taxes immediately despite criticising the current record high tax burden. He said that “we have got to grow the economy” before slashing taxes or ramping up public spending.
Mr Sunak admitted that 2023 “wasn’t the easiest of years for any of us, it wasn’t an easy year for our country” – but added: “I’m going to tell you, I know that 2024 is going to be a better year, I want to make sure that all you believe 2024 is going to be a better year too.”
The Prime Minister has received a boost from lower-than-expected inflation figures in recent months, with some economists now predicting it will fall below its 2 per cent target by the end of spring – laying the ground for cuts to interest rates.
