Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has announced that the next general election will be held on 4 July.
The announcement comes following a day of rumours that the Conservative Party leader would call an election.
Rishi Sunak’s speech began by looking back at his time as Chancellor when he introduced the furlough scheme.
“I have never and will never leave the people of this country to face the darkest of days alone”, he said.
“Our economy is now growing faster than anyone predicted, outpacing Germany, France and the United States, and this morning it was confirmed that inflation is back to normal”.
“This is proof that the plan and priorities are set out are working”.
Confirming the general election date, he said, “Earlier today I spoke with His Majesty the King to request the dissolution of Parliament”.
“The King has granted this request and we will have a general election on the 4th of July”.
Northern Ireland Candidates
The two largest parties in Northern Ireland, Sinn Fein and the Democratic Unionist Party, are yet to announce any candidates for the general election.
With this announcement from the Prime Minister, pressure will increase on all parties to get their campaigns rolling.
Alliance, the UUP and the SDLP have all announced various candidates.
