PM Boris Johnson to ask Parliament for December 12 election
Prime Minister Boris Johnson is to call for an election to take place on 12 December.
Johnson, who has already sought to go to the polls twice, is expected to bring forward a motion under the Fixed Term Parliament Act this afternoon, as the Queen’s Speech is concluded.
If Johnson attempts the FTPA route, there is no guarantee he will get the two-thirds backing he needs to win an election. Many Labour MPs feel incredibly nervous about the current state of the opinion polls – nearly 150 MPs are said to be considering rejecting any such move from their frontbench.
But many Conservative MPs are also unkeen.
Allies of Philip Hammond told Morning Wire the former chancellor thought the focus should be on getting the Brexit legislation called the Withdrawal Agreement Bill (WAB) through ahead of a public vote.
In a letter to Leader of the Opposition Jeremy Corbyn, Johnson bemoaned the “repeated delays” which he said had been “bad for the economy, bad for business, and bad for the millions of people trying to plan their futures.”
He added: “It is our duty to end this nightmare and provide the country with a solution as soon as we reasonably can.”
Johnson noted that if the EU only offered a short extension of a month or less, he hoped Corbyn would “cooperate with me” to get the deal through parliament.
But a three month extension would mean there “must” be an election, Johnson said. However, he also commits to “all possible time” to be dedicated to scrutinising the WAB before parliament dissolves on 6 November.
“If I win a majority in this election, we will then ratify the great new deal that I have negotiated, get Brexit done in January and the country will move on,” Johnson added.
“If you win a majority, then you will, I assume, implement your policy.”
This is the first time the Prime Minister has effectively conceded that his pledge to “Get Brexit Done” by 31 October is out of the window.
Main image: Getty