:00:10. > :00:14.I have just chaired a meeting of the cabinet where we agreed that the
:00:15. > :00:16.government should call a general election to be held on the 8th of
:00:17. > :00:19.June. Theresa May takes the country -
:00:20. > :00:21.and her fellow politicians - by surprise and calls
:00:22. > :00:23.for a snap election. She says it's necessary
:00:24. > :00:25.because of continuing At this moment of enormous
:00:26. > :00:29.national significance, there should be unity
:00:30. > :00:34.here in Westminster. The country is coming together
:00:35. > :00:45.but Westminster is not. Jeremy Corbyn welcomes the election
:00:46. > :00:48.- saying it's a chance for Labour We're going out there to put
:00:49. > :00:54.the case for how this country could be run,
:00:55. > :00:56.how it could be different, how we could have a much fairer
:00:57. > :01:05.society that works for all. For some, the election
:01:06. > :01:09.is a political opportunity. For others, it's
:01:10. > :01:11.political opportunism. It's very clear the Prime Minister's
:01:12. > :01:15.announcement today is one all about the narrow interests
:01:16. > :01:18.of her own party, not the interests We have the opportunity to give
:01:19. > :01:22.the British people the chance to change the direction
:01:23. > :01:24.of the country, to be opposed to a hard Brexit,
:01:25. > :01:29.keep us in the single market and give Britain the decent,
:01:30. > :01:31.strong opposition it deserves. And how do voters feel
:01:32. > :01:34.about a second general Oh, for God's sake,
:01:35. > :01:41.I can't stand this. There's too much politics
:01:42. > :01:45.going on at the moment. We will be looking at why
:01:46. > :01:53.the Prime Minister has decided to call for an election now and how
:01:54. > :02:09.the vote in seven weeks' time And we will have more reaction to
:02:10. > :02:30.the Prime Minister's plans throughout the day here on BBC News.
:02:31. > :02:35.Good evening and welcome to the BBC News at Six
:02:36. > :02:37.from Downing Street, where this morning the Prime Minister
:02:38. > :02:40.called for a snap general election on June the 8th.
:02:41. > :02:41.Theresa May said Britain needs certainty, stability
:02:42. > :02:43.and strong leadership following the EU referendum.
:02:44. > :02:46.Explaining the decision, Mrs May said she has reluctantly
:02:47. > :02:48.come to the conclusion that a vote is necessary, adding
:02:49. > :02:51."the country is coming together but Westminster is not."
:02:52. > :02:53.She will need parliamentary approval to formally
:02:54. > :02:55.call the election - a vote on that will
:02:56. > :03:00.In the first of tonight's reports, our Political Editor Laura
:03:01. > :03:07.Kuenssberg on this year's General Election.
:03:08. > :03:17.Did she surprise them? Did she surprise you? Did Theresa May even
:03:18. > :03:24.surprised herself? Her biggest decision as Prime Minister, taking
:03:25. > :03:27.only days ago. I have just chaired a meeting of the Cabinet where we
:03:28. > :03:33.agreed that the government should call a general election to be held
:03:34. > :03:39.on the 8th of June. That was not her plan. But she says to get Brexit
:03:40. > :03:44.done, she needs more support around here. In recent weeks, Labour have
:03:45. > :03:49.threatened to vote against the final agreement we reach with the European
:03:50. > :03:54.Union. The Liberal Democrats have said they want to grind the business
:03:55. > :03:58.of government to a standstill. The Scottish National Party say they
:03:59. > :04:01.will vote against the legislation that formally repeals Britain's
:04:02. > :04:06.membership of the European Union. And unelected members of the House
:04:07. > :04:13.of Lords have vowed to fight us every step of the way. Our opponents
:04:14. > :04:16.believe because the government's majority is so small, that our
:04:17. > :04:22.resolve will weaken and they can force us to change course. They are
:04:23. > :04:25.wrong. So tomorrow there will be a vote in parliament that will all but
:04:26. > :04:28.certainly get the process going. If you are in any doubt about how the
:04:29. > :04:36.Tories will frame your choice... I have only recently and reluctantly
:04:37. > :04:38.come to this conclusion. Since I became premised, I have said that
:04:39. > :04:45.there should be no election until 2020. But now I have concluded that
:04:46. > :04:50.the only way to guarantee certainty and stability for the years ahead is
:04:51. > :04:55.to hold the selection and seek your support for the decisions I must
:04:56. > :05:00.take. Every vote for the Conservatives will make me stronger
:05:01. > :05:04.when I negotiate with Britain -- for Britain with the prime ministers,
:05:05. > :05:07.chancellors and president of the European Union. Every vote for the
:05:08. > :05:11.Conservatives will mean we can stick to our plan for a stronger Britain
:05:12. > :05:16.and take the right long-term decisions for more secure future.
:05:17. > :05:21.Most of her ministers have been in the dark. Only in the last few days
:05:22. > :05:25.did she decide. Theresa May only moved in year 279 days ago. But she
:05:26. > :05:28.has said consistently that there should be no early general election.
:05:29. > :05:33.Quite simply, she has changed her mind. What happens next for Theresa
:05:34. > :05:37.May will be up to you. When did you know there was going to be an
:05:38. > :05:41.election? Great opportunities ahead. When did you know? Reluctant to tell
:05:42. > :05:45.us when you knew? When did she change her mind? When did the Prime
:05:46. > :05:50.Minister change her mind? Good morning. Lovely day. When did you
:05:51. > :05:54.know there was going to be an election? When I heard this morning.
:05:55. > :05:57.Labour will support tomorrow's thought to push the button even
:05:58. > :06:03.though the weakness of Jeremy Corbyn is one of the reasons why an early
:06:04. > :06:06.election is on. His supporters hope that his ideas will cut through. I
:06:07. > :06:10.welcome the opportunity for us to put the case to the people of
:06:11. > :06:15.Britain to stand up against this government and its failed economic
:06:16. > :06:18.agenda, which has left our NHS with problems, our schools are
:06:19. > :06:24.underfunded and so many people uncertain. We want to put our case
:06:25. > :06:27.out there for the people of Britain, for a society that cares for all, an
:06:28. > :06:33.economy that works for all and a Brexit that works for all. More than
:06:34. > :06:36.ever, perhaps, this election will not be what about patterns -- about
:06:37. > :06:40.what happened here but the whole country. The Tories will not promise
:06:41. > :06:46.another vote on independence in Scotland but Nicola Sturgeon will.
:06:47. > :06:49.This is the biggest U-turn in recent political history. It is very clear
:06:50. > :06:51.that the Prime Minister's announcement today is one of about
:06:52. > :06:55.the narrow interests of her own party and not the interests of the
:06:56. > :07:02.country overall. On the road already, as planned. The Lib Dems
:07:03. > :07:05.see opportunity to come back from rock bottom. It is an opportunity
:07:06. > :07:09.for the people of this country to change the direction of this
:07:10. > :07:11.country, to decide that they do not want a hard Brexit, they want to
:07:12. > :07:16.keep Britain in the single market and indeed it is an opportunity for
:07:17. > :07:20.us to have a decent, strong opposition in this country that we
:07:21. > :07:25.desperately need. And though the Tories start the selection having
:07:26. > :07:28.gone back on their promise not to hold one... Many people in this
:07:29. > :07:32.country will think, Theresa May told me she would not do this and now she
:07:33. > :07:38.is. Can I trust? Why should I? When the facts change, you change your
:07:39. > :07:44.mind. She was reluctant to make this decision but she was brought to the
:07:45. > :07:47.decision by the fact that presenting herself with a mandate that allows
:07:48. > :07:54.us to get the best outcome for Brexit and for Britain is a policy,
:07:55. > :07:58.that is the thing that is in the national interest. That looks like
:07:59. > :08:02.this election is entirely about Brexit, that Theresa May is so
:08:03. > :08:05.worried about how hard it will be, she feels she needs a thumping
:08:06. > :08:11.majority of Tory backbenchers to get it through. Of course we want a
:08:12. > :08:14.strong mandate, but the aim is to do two things, one is to provide a
:08:15. > :08:18.strong mandate for Brexit and the other is a strong mandate for the
:08:19. > :08:22.future. The country will be asked for its view again, let's than a
:08:23. > :08:26.year since the referendum, when everything around you changed. I
:08:27. > :08:30.think she has been changing her mind over a little while. I think
:08:31. > :08:33.instinct was not to do it for strong reasons, and she did not want the
:08:34. > :08:37.public to think it was political. I think this sense of the nature of
:08:38. > :08:40.Parliament has changed quite a lot in the last month or two. This is
:08:41. > :08:44.the ultimate test for us because that is what we are in politics for.
:08:45. > :08:49.We are in politics to win elections, to win power, to put our values into
:08:50. > :08:53.practice, and we've got to seize any opportunity that we get to do that.
:08:54. > :09:06.How many more times are you going to change
:09:07. > :09:09.your mind, Prime Minister? Win well and Theresa May escapes some
:09:10. > :09:12.political problems properly early of any campaign claims casualties, too.
:09:13. > :09:13.Just ask anyone who has ever lived at this address. Laura Kuenssberg,
:09:14. > :09:14.BBC News, Westminster. Well as you heard there, both Labour
:09:15. > :09:17.and the Liberal Democrats have welcomed the decision to call
:09:18. > :09:19.an early election. They now have just seven weeks
:09:20. > :09:22.to make their pitch to the nation that they can be the ruling party -
:09:23. > :09:25.or at the very least prevent Our Deputy Political Editor John
:09:26. > :09:29.Pienaar now on the challenge for some of the opposition parties
:09:30. > :09:35.ahead of the General Election. Westminster's shutting up shop soon,
:09:36. > :09:40.again. And they're off, again. The sound bites, the slogans, all
:09:41. > :09:45.desperate for your attention. Why now? The Tories start strongly.
:09:46. > :09:49.Labour and its leader trailed badly. While Jeremy Corbyn supporters are
:09:50. > :09:53.working hard to beat the odds. To point up the issues on policies,
:09:54. > :09:57.they hope may somehow prove the polls wrong. The British public vote
:09:58. > :10:01.on leadership when it comes to general elections and as of now,
:10:02. > :10:07.Jeremy Corbyn is a mile behind. I think the more people focus on our
:10:08. > :10:12.programme and our leadership, the more tawdry watch Theresa May is
:10:13. > :10:16.offering will seem. The British public do not want a Prime Minister
:10:17. > :10:21.handing him at hand in glove with Donald Trump. They did not vote to
:10:22. > :10:27.be poorer in the referendum on the EU. The more people focus on the
:10:28. > :10:34.issues and the people, the better it will be for us. What about Jeremy
:10:35. > :10:38.Corbyn? Is there going to be any element of him on your material? I
:10:39. > :10:42.will be the candidate in Chester and it will be my name on the ballot. I
:10:43. > :10:46.will be talking about my record and the things I have achieved. Is
:10:47. > :10:52.Jeremy Corbyn an asset or a liability, in a word? Well, he
:10:53. > :10:56.attracts some people's favourable attention. Good times for the Lib
:10:57. > :11:01.Dems seem a long time ago. In the last election, big hitters, Cabinet
:11:02. > :11:06.ministers tumbled one after another. Now they are the most pro Europe
:11:07. > :11:08.party in politics and survivors of that famous wrote believe they can
:11:09. > :11:13.turn scepticism about Brexit into support for them. They have a lot of
:11:14. > :11:18.recovering to do. If you look at the British glitter spectrum, there is
:11:19. > :11:23.quite a large centre ground, which certainly Jeremy Corbyn as a
:11:24. > :11:26.backbencher has never occupied. And which Theresa May, by pressuring
:11:27. > :11:30.hard Brexit, also does not seem to want to occupy. It is there for the
:11:31. > :11:33.taking for the Lib Dems. You are hoping this might be the beginning
:11:34. > :11:37.of the beginning of a comeback? Let's put it no more highly than
:11:38. > :11:42.that but I would be very happy with the beginning of the beginning of a
:11:43. > :11:45.comeback. The Tories sound confident but some in former Lib Dem
:11:46. > :11:50.strongholds in London and the south west expect a tough fight and hope
:11:51. > :11:53.that the Lib Dems are not ready for the road back to Westminster. I
:11:54. > :11:57.don't think the Lib Dems have restored their infrastructure after
:11:58. > :12:00.the dramatic losses in 2015. But you know you will have a fight on your
:12:01. > :12:05.hands? We know we will and we will always fight to win. Nigel Farage.
:12:06. > :12:11.Since Nigel Farage left to seek his own political fortunes, backing
:12:12. > :12:15.Donald Trump, the party has lost ground. They have lost the odd
:12:16. > :12:19.election they might have won. The referendum has gone and so is Nigel
:12:20. > :12:25.Farage. You are a party without a purpose. I do not buy that at all.
:12:26. > :12:29.Theresa May may well have triggered Article 50 but the negotiations have
:12:30. > :12:34.not started yet. If people want Brexit, as they voted for in June
:12:35. > :12:40.23, they will only get that if they have Ukip MPs elected to the House
:12:41. > :12:42.of Commons and that is why we go into this election feeling
:12:43. > :12:46.confident. You look optimistic but you will need to be? We are
:12:47. > :12:52.optimistic because we are the party opposing Brexit and the deposition
:12:53. > :12:55.doubling back demolishing of our public services. The Prime Minister
:12:56. > :12:59.has chosen a time of maximum advantage to call this election, as
:13:00. > :13:01.prime ministers always have and possibly always will. Now all
:13:02. > :13:06.parties will have to scramble to choose candidates to raise millions
:13:07. > :13:09.in donations and in a rush to put together a policy manifesto that
:13:10. > :13:16.will decide Britain's future for the next five years. 51 days, then, to
:13:17. > :13:20.change or rehouse the tenants of this place. Excitement and drama for
:13:21. > :13:24.some. For others, may be fed up with another election so soon, time may
:13:25. > :13:25.pass more slowly. It will be a Brexit election but Britain's future
:13:26. > :13:29.remains to be decided. This took all of us, not least the
:13:30. > :13:38.Cabinet, by surprise. So after repeatedly insisting
:13:39. > :13:46.she wouldn't call an election, I think are stated reasons are not
:13:47. > :13:51.quite the whole story. She says that she had no choice, there would be
:13:52. > :13:54.opposition antics over Brexit. It has been tricky over the last couple
:13:55. > :13:57.of months for the government in Parliament, getting Brexit plans
:13:58. > :14:01.through, but it has not been impossible. Like any big human
:14:02. > :14:04.decision, there is a mixture of motivations here. If she ends up
:14:05. > :14:08.with a bigger majority, as the Conservatives hope, and expect, of
:14:09. > :14:13.course it will be easier for her to get Brexit plans through Parliament.
:14:14. > :14:16.Of course it will give her a stronger arm, stronger political
:14:17. > :14:20.muscle when dealing with tricky negotiations with her EU
:14:21. > :14:26.counterparts. But it will also give ministers that bit more time, a bit
:14:27. > :14:29.more breathing space to deliver the logistics of Brexit. Because the
:14:30. > :14:33.negotiations will not be racing up towards a hard deadline of a general
:14:34. > :14:37.election in 2020, just when things are getting rougher. And crucially
:14:38. > :14:42.for Theresa May, it will give her more time and more political freedom
:14:43. > :14:45.to focus on the things she cares about apart from the European Union.
:14:46. > :14:50.Whether that is schools or social care. So in a broad sense, I think
:14:51. > :14:53.she wants her own individual mandate and she has come to believe that
:14:54. > :14:58.that is how she will get some political freedom, how she might be
:14:59. > :15:02.able to buy a ticket out of what has been in very constricted political
:15:03. > :15:05.situation, not of her own choosing. But of course, although the polls
:15:06. > :15:10.suggest she will end up with a hefty majority, the Poland tonight proves
:15:11. > :15:13.absolutely nothing, and the hurly-burly of any political
:15:14. > :15:17.campaign can have all sorts of unintended consequences and all
:15:18. > :15:20.sorts of unexpected political victims, too. We will come back to
:15:21. > :15:23.you later in the programme but for now, thank you.
:15:24. > :15:26.More than 44 million people are likely to be eligible to vote
:15:27. > :15:29.Some constituencies, where the vote was close
:15:30. > :15:32.in the 2015 election, will attract particular attention.
:15:33. > :15:34.One of those is Dewsbury, in West Yorkshire, a seat
:15:35. > :15:35.which Labour gained from the Conservatives
:15:36. > :15:45.Our correspondent, Danny Savage, is there.
:15:46. > :15:48.Fiona, just 1,451 votes separated Labour from the Conservatives
:15:49. > :16:05.This has to be one of the seats Theresa May aims to win
:16:06. > :16:08.I've spent the day in this constituency talking
:16:09. > :16:11.to 'the voters' and asking them what their priorities will be
:16:12. > :16:13.on June 8th and if they've changed their minds since
:16:14. > :16:16.Lunchtime today at the West Riding Refreshment Rooms in Dewsbury.
:16:17. > :16:18.Currently a Labour seat, it's the customers here
:16:19. > :16:20.that Theresa May hopes will swing her way.
:16:21. > :16:23.But this man, for one, isn't for turning.
:16:24. > :16:26.I'm still going to be supportive of what the Labour leadership
:16:27. > :16:27.is seeking to achieve, and certainly extremely
:16:28. > :16:32.negative about what Theresa May has been doing.
:16:33. > :16:36.Nothing's changed since the last general election for you?
:16:37. > :16:41.This snap election was the talk of the tap room.
:16:42. > :16:43.The Upton family are surprised, but can see where the lines
:16:44. > :16:50.The key issue has to be Brexit and I think if there was a party
:16:51. > :16:52.that was campaigning to either stop the process or to come out
:16:53. > :16:55.of Brexit, I think that certainly would be the party that
:16:56. > :17:01.I think it's a very brave and bold decision that she's made to go
:17:02. > :17:06.Do you think it'll work for her or it could backfire?
:17:07. > :17:09.I think here, possibly not such a big gamble,
:17:10. > :17:13.but across the country, I think it is more of a gamble.
:17:14. > :17:15.It's the first general election since I've turned 18,
:17:16. > :17:24.and a lot of my friends are really excited to vote, but I've got no
:17:25. > :17:27.but I've got no idea which way I'm going to vote so I'm going to have
:17:28. > :17:32.So the campaigning that the parties are going to do over the next six
:17:33. > :17:37.Dewsbury is home to a large Asian community, but the voters we spoke
:17:38. > :17:39.to haven't changed their preference since the last election.
:17:40. > :17:47.Because Labour do better for the working class.
:17:48. > :17:49.The Conservatives didn't do anything for the working class,
:17:50. > :17:55.Labour, I would vote for Labour again.
:17:56. > :17:58.So your mind hasn't been changed over the last two years?
:17:59. > :18:02.No, I've been voting for a long time now and I've always stuck to Labour.
:18:03. > :18:04.But in a nearby cafe, one businessman agreed
:18:05. > :18:06.with the reasoning behind today's surprise announcement.
:18:07. > :18:09.I think it's a good thing for Theresa May, generally,
:18:10. > :18:12.and I do think hopefully it's needed to have a clearer mandate in order
:18:13. > :18:20.Back at the bar at the railway station, George fits the profile
:18:21. > :18:23.He voted Labour last time, but is supporting
:18:24. > :18:29.I think they'll negotiate the best deal from the EU
:18:30. > :18:37.The final decision for many of them, though, is still pending.
:18:38. > :18:46.So what's been the reaction around the UK to today's announcement?
:18:47. > :18:48.Sarah Smith, our Scotland editor, is in Edinburgh, Chris Buckler
:18:49. > :18:51.is in Belfast for us and our Wales political editor, Nick
:18:52. > :18:56.Nicola Sturgeon has described this as a "huge political
:18:57. > :19:09.Yes. She thinks it's a miscalculation bass Nicola Sturgeon
:19:10. > :19:13.believes she can use this election to reinforce her mandate for another
:19:14. > :19:16.referendum on Scottish independence. Theresa May said there can't be
:19:17. > :19:21.another referendum until well after the UK has left the EU. It will not
:19:22. > :19:24.be Brexit that dominates this campaign in Scotland, here the
:19:25. > :19:25.arguments are all going to be about independence and whether there
:19:26. > :19:32.should be another vote on that. As voters across Scotland are asked
:19:33. > :19:40.to decide who they want to represent question of whether Westminster
:19:41. > :19:46.should continue to govern Scotland. The issue of independence
:19:47. > :19:48.and whether Scotland should have another vote on that will be central
:19:49. > :19:50.to this Nicola Sturgeon says she's
:19:51. > :19:54.ready for the fight. I think the Prime Minister
:19:55. > :19:56.has called this election for selfish, narrow,
:19:57. > :19:57.party political interests, but she has called it and therefore
:19:58. > :20:00.I relish the prospect of getting out there,
:20:01. > :20:04.standing up for Scotland's interests and values, standing up
:20:05. > :20:06.for Scotland's voice being heard and standing against the ability of
:20:07. > :20:15.a right-wing Conservative Party to impose whatever policies
:20:16. > :20:17.it wants in Scotland. The SNP believes this could be
:20:18. > :20:22.a great opportunity. If they turn in a strong
:20:23. > :20:25.performance in this election, it could bolster their argument
:20:26. > :20:27.for another referendum on Scottish The only problem is,
:20:28. > :20:31.they did so well in the 2015 election, winning 56 out
:20:32. > :20:35.of Scotland's 59 seats, it's hard to see how
:20:36. > :20:38.they can do any better. And if they lose
:20:39. > :20:41.some seats, well, of course, their opponents will claim
:20:42. > :20:43.that shows Scottish voters don't Many voters who do not want
:20:44. > :20:52.an independent Scotland or another referendum now see the Tories as
:20:53. > :20:55.the staunch defenders of the Union, which they hope could attract more
:20:56. > :21:00.votes in this election. I don't take any voters
:21:01. > :21:02.for granted, and nor should any other party,
:21:03. > :21:04.but we are fit for the fight, ready to go
:21:05. > :21:06.and we think we can put on seats
:21:07. > :21:09.across the country and I think you will find that "peak nat" has
:21:10. > :21:20.passed and there will be fewer SNP
:21:21. > :21:22.MPs after 8th June. It is certainly what I will
:21:23. > :21:24.be working towards. There has been a slight
:21:25. > :21:26.adjustment to today's Scottish Labour often struggle
:21:27. > :21:29.to make their arguments heard when the debate is dominated
:21:30. > :21:32.by the question of independence. This is a chance for everyone across
:21:33. > :21:35.the United Kingdom to have their say about the type of
:21:36. > :21:37.government they want. What you are going to see a Labour
:21:38. > :21:40.campaign focused on Labour values, an alternative to Tory austerity,
:21:41. > :21:43.and I think that is something worth The Scottish Lib Dems will also be
:21:44. > :21:46.arguing against another We want to keep Scotland
:21:47. > :21:49.in the United Kingdom and we want to keep
:21:50. > :21:52.the United Kingdom at the heart of Europe,
:21:53. > :21:56.in the single market. That's the opportunity
:21:57. > :21:57.in this campaign. There is a certain irony here,
:21:58. > :21:59.which will not be lost They were told by Theresa May now
:22:00. > :22:04.is not the time for a referendum on independence because politicians
:22:05. > :22:09.should be concentrating on Brexit. Now she's called an election that
:22:10. > :22:14.will be, in Scotland, Sarah Smith there with
:22:15. > :22:20.the view from Scotland. We'll go to Cardiff
:22:21. > :22:23.in a moment, but to Belfast Both main parties there seeing this
:22:24. > :22:29.election as an opportunity. That is true. I suspect many others
:22:30. > :22:34.who feel the last thing Northern Ireland needs is another vote. Bear
:22:35. > :22:38.in mind there have been two Assembly elections in the last 12 months. The
:22:39. > :22:41.last one caused by the complete collapse of power-sharing at
:22:42. > :22:46.Stormont. That is crisis that has to be fixed. Stormont parties had
:22:47. > :22:49.missed two deadlines to form a Government and those talks were
:22:50. > :22:53.meant to continue in the days ahead. Calling this vote probably leaves
:22:54. > :22:57.them with virtually no chance of success and probably already adds to
:22:58. > :23:03.that sense of political instability here. Election campaigns here tend
:23:04. > :23:09.to be divisive. They tend to push the parties apart. Commentators
:23:10. > :23:12.called the last one sectarian. This one is unlikely to be very
:23:13. > :23:19.different. Unionistes had are calling it an opportunity to vote
:23:20. > :23:22.for the Union while the Republicans are emphasising the negative
:23:23. > :23:26.situation of Brexit and calling for a United Ireland. With the UK
:23:27. > :23:29.parliament looking to be dissolved very soon there is the real problem
:23:30. > :23:32.that there is no Government at Stormont. Westminster has two
:23:33. > :23:36.choices, to take over the running of Northern Ireland, the other is yet
:23:37. > :23:43.another Assembly election which will go alongside this general election.
:23:44. > :23:46.Chris Buckler in Belfast, thank you. The decision has not
:23:47. > :23:54.gone down so well there? That's right. It's worth saying a
:23:55. > :23:58.number of political leaders in Wales have given their impression that
:23:59. > :24:04.they want to roll up their sleeves and get stuck into this general
:24:05. > :24:09.election campaign. Leanne Wood said it was "game on" when she heard the
:24:10. > :24:13.obvious exception is Welsh Labour. The Leader of the Labour Party in
:24:14. > :24:17.Wales, Carwyn Jones, who said it's a question of whether it's in the
:24:18. > :24:19.national interest, questioned the timing and what impact it would have
:24:20. > :24:23.on the peace process in Northern Ireland. The obvious omission is the
:24:24. > :24:28.potential vulnerability in Wales for the Labour Party on a number of
:24:29. > :24:34.parliamentary seats. Labour is the dominant force, but two years ago
:24:35. > :24:38.the Conservatives were effective. Wales voted to leave, the
:24:39. > :24:42.calculation from the Tories will be there will be many people in Wales
:24:43. > :24:48.who will want to give Theresa May a mandate to take the UK out of the
:24:49. > :24:52.EU. Elsewhere, for wildly differing reasons, the Lib Dems and Ukip will
:24:53. > :24:56.also both feel there are opportunities. No shortage of
:24:57. > :25:01.enthusiasm from many political leaders. I guess the question is
:25:02. > :25:06.whether that's shared among the wider Welsh public. There have been
:25:07. > :25:10.fewer votes in referendums in Wales than Scotland and Northern Ireland.
:25:11. > :25:12.Wales had more of its fair shares of votes in recent years. We shall see.
:25:13. > :25:17.Nick, thank you. Well, the country will go
:25:18. > :25:20.to the polls in just seven weeks. Theresa May will be hoping
:25:21. > :25:23.to build on her working Our political correspondent,
:25:24. > :25:26.Vicki Young, looks at the numbers and where the key battlegrounds
:25:27. > :25:30.for seats are likely to be. Theresa May says she wants certainty
:25:31. > :25:34.and stability for the UK and for her that means a clear,
:25:35. > :25:41.Conservative election victory. She's made a calculation
:25:42. > :25:43.that she can improve on her party's This is the electoral
:25:44. > :25:47.map showing the results of the 2015 general election,
:25:48. > :25:49.most striking are the swathes of blue across England and SNP
:25:50. > :25:51.dominance in Scotland. The Conservatives picked up 331,
:25:52. > :25:58.Labour won 232, the SNP 56, the Lib Dems and DUP
:25:59. > :26:04.eight seats each. With other parties factored in,
:26:05. > :26:10.it left the Tories with a very slim So, where will the Tories
:26:11. > :26:16.try to boost their numbers? The North West and the Midlands
:26:17. > :26:18.are crucial battlegrounds, here there are numerous marginal
:26:19. > :26:22.constituencies where very few votes At the last election,
:26:23. > :26:29.Labour made little headway Certainly, Theresa May is calling
:26:30. > :26:34.this election against a backdrop where she is very, very much
:26:35. > :26:38.the favourite to win and, in truth, against the backdrop where no
:26:39. > :26:41.opposition party has ever gone into an election in such a weak
:26:42. > :26:48.position in the opinion polls. Now, Labour desperately need
:26:49. > :26:51.a revival in Scotland if they're to form the next Government,
:26:52. > :26:53.but the Tories and Lib Dems will also be hoping to prise some
:26:54. > :26:56.seats away from the SNP. Fascinating too will be
:26:57. > :27:01.the south-west of England, They were wiped out here
:27:02. > :27:06.at the last election and are hoping for a comeback,
:27:07. > :27:09.but how will their pro-EU message go down in a region
:27:10. > :27:13.that voted for Brexit? The Prime Minister seems
:27:14. > :27:15.to be trying to make If you look at last year's
:27:16. > :27:20.referendum result, you can see why - How Britain voted then
:27:21. > :27:26.could have a big impact Will areas that voted remain deliver
:27:27. > :27:33.a bruising message to Theresa May? General election campaigns can
:27:34. > :27:35.be unpredictable and, just two years after the last one,
:27:36. > :27:38.voters must decide again whether there will be dramatic
:27:39. > :27:40.changes to the electoral So what appetite is there
:27:41. > :27:50.for another general election - just two years after the last one -
:27:51. > :27:53.and a year after the EU referendum? Jon Kay has been talking
:27:54. > :27:58.to voters in Bristol. This is Brenda, in her lifetime
:27:59. > :28:02.there have been 19 general elections, so when we told
:28:03. > :28:05.there was going to be number 20... Oh, for God's sake,
:28:06. > :28:12.I can't honestly... There's too much politics
:28:13. > :28:16.going on at the moment, It gets things out in
:28:17. > :28:23.the open, sorts things out? I thought she said that
:28:24. > :28:27.initially when she took over. Brenda spoke for many of the voters
:28:28. > :28:31.we met here in Bristol today. Regardless of party politics,
:28:32. > :28:34.we found little enthusiasm. Are you excited about
:28:35. > :28:36.another election? It's too much.
:28:37. > :28:43.It's too much, ain't it? They're just taking advantage
:28:44. > :28:46.of a bad situation at the moment. So, all in all, it's not
:28:47. > :28:48.good for the country. But others welcome the chance
:28:49. > :28:51.to have another say. Do you feel ready for
:28:52. > :28:52.a general election? It'll be nice if there was some sort
:28:53. > :28:58.of clarity over what's going on. There's a lot of muddled
:28:59. > :29:00.information out there. As for Brenda, the politicians have
:29:01. > :29:03.seven weeks to get her out to vote. I think the whole country has
:29:04. > :29:09.had enough of politics, politicians telling us this,
:29:10. > :29:12.that and the other and to have us, I wouldn't want to, my dear,
:29:13. > :29:22.because I don't play the game. Let's get some final thoughts
:29:23. > :29:44.on today's announcement. In a moment, I'll be talking
:29:45. > :29:46.to Laura Kuenssberg, but first our Europe editor,
:29:47. > :29:57.Katya Adler, joins us from Paris. Behind closed doors this evening
:29:58. > :30:00.there is a strong sense of optimism. One be very high-level EU source
:30:01. > :30:05.saided to me this evening that he thought the chances of a good Brexit
:30:06. > :30:10.deal for both sides had gone up enormously hi said if Theresa May
:30:11. > :30:13.win as resounding victory at the poll that triumph would be heard and
:30:14. > :30:17.not those of who he called his hardline Brexiteers. The EU would
:30:18. > :30:24.get a strong reliable negotiating partner. He said. He believed that
:30:25. > :30:28.would be good for both partners in the negotiation. There are thoughts
:30:29. > :30:34.this could speed up the process so there could be talks about a future
:30:35. > :30:39.UK-EU trade relationship far earlier than imagined if talks go well. As
:30:40. > :30:41.soon, I've been told, as the end of September after the German
:30:42. > :30:47.elections. Again, if all goes smoothly.
:30:48. > :30:49.Let's get some final thoughts on today's announcement,
:30:50. > :31:00.Where do you think this election is likely to be won or lost? In any
:31:01. > :31:04.campaign it is hard to predict what will bubble up. It will be about
:31:05. > :31:08.policy, personalities for the party leaders, and also about the parties
:31:09. > :31:11.themselves. More than anything else, it will feel different in different
:31:12. > :31:14.parts of the country but it will feel like an election all about
:31:15. > :31:20.Brexit. Because Theresa May herself has made it so. She has directly, in
:31:21. > :31:23.a way that leaders have not done for some time, directly ask the British
:31:24. > :31:28.people for a mandate to get that job done. Very specifically, very
:31:29. > :31:32.clearly. And even though there will be other things that she and the
:31:33. > :31:35.other political parties want to talk about, I think it is hard to see yet
:31:36. > :31:40.not being a main theme of what actually happens in the next seven
:31:41. > :31:44.weeks or so. There is a real irony here because one of the reasons
:31:45. > :31:47.Theresa May did not want to have an early election is because she wanted
:31:48. > :31:55.to get Brexit done and dusted before actually having the next vote for
:31:56. > :31:58.the whole country. But it appears talking to ministers as the
:31:59. > :32:01.complicity of that has become real, it has been hurt adulation that the
:32:02. > :32:05.canniest move has been to do this and do it now and get it out of the
:32:06. > :32:09.way, with the hope that she ends up with a bigger majority and life
:32:10. > :32:12.becomes much easier. We know today, from today, that Theresa May has
:32:13. > :32:17.been very, very good at keeping secrets, but we do not know whether
:32:18. > :32:24.or not her talents extend to winning elections. Laura, thank you very
:32:25. > :32:28.much. Theresa May made her surprise announcement today in glorious
:32:29. > :32:30.sunshine. Let's see what the weather is like today for the rest of the
:32:31. > :32:39.country. Beautiful weather for most of the
:32:40. > :32:42.country today but it is going to turn chilly across some parts of the
:32:43. > :32:46.UK with frost on the way. The skies clear across England and Wales at
:32:47. > :32:51.least early in the day. The cloud has been increasing over the course
:32:52. > :32:55.of this evening as a result of moisture coming from the Atlantic.
:32:56. > :33:00.We have had spots of rain across the western isles. Not so frosty here,
:33:01. > :33:05.unlike last night, when it was really cold. The coldest weather
:33:06. > :33:09.will now be across the south, -3 or minus four degrees outside the city
:33:10. > :33:13.centre, which could be damaging for tender plants. We will wake up to a
:33:14. > :33:19.crisp, sunny start across many southern areas. The cloud will tends
:33:20. > :33:24.to increase a little bit but it should be a dry day for many of us.
:33:25. > :33:28.A decent day across eastern parts of Scotland as well. High pressure with
:33:29. > :33:32.us during the course of Thursday, particularly across the southern
:33:33. > :33:37.half of the UK. In the morning, a little on the cloudy side. Misty and
:33:38. > :33:41.rocky but in the afternoon, it will be better. Temperatures up on
:33:42. > :33:45.Thursday. 15 in London, and it might even get up to 15 or more across
:33:46. > :33:49.eastern parts of Scotland given a little bit of sunshine. We do have a
:33:50. > :33:53.weather front expected to cross the country during the course of Friday
:33:54. > :33:56.and that will introduce colder air from the north. That is a hint of
:33:57. > :34:04.fresh weather coming our way towards the weekend. By the time we get to
:34:05. > :34:08.Saturday, I think it will be a little cooler. Overall, a lot of dry
:34:09. > :34:17.weather around. Back to ten Downing St.
:34:18. > :34:24.A reminder of our story, dominating our bulletin today. Theresa May has
:34:25. > :34:30.taken politicians are important to us by surprise, calling for a
:34:31. > :34:31.general election to be held on June eight. And that