Sussex voters are set to head to the polls in June as Prime Minister Theresa May has announced a snap general election.

The Conservatives under David Cameron won a narrow majority in the House of Commons back in 2015, with the SNP making massive gains in Scotland, while the Lib Dems losing all but eight of their MPs.

In Sussex the Tories comfortably held on to all their seats, apart from Hove, snatching both Lewes and Eastbourne from the Liberal Democrats.

Caroline Lucas is the only Green MP, having represented Brighton Pavilion since 2010, while Labour’s Peter Kyle represents Hove.

Outside the steps of Number 10 Downing Street this morning, Mrs May said: “Britain is leaving the European Union and there can be no turning back, and as we look to the future the Government has the right plan for negotiating our new relationship with Europe.”

She accused the other parties of ‘game playing’ and argued that ‘division in Westminster will put at risk our ability to make a success of Brexit’.

Mrs May said: “We need a general election and we need it now.”

In a statement, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said: “I welcome the Prime Minister’s decision to give the British people the chance to vote for a government that will put the interests of the majority first.

Labour will be offering the country an effective alternative to a government that has failed to rebuild the economy, delivered falling living standards and damaging cuts to our schools and NHS.

“In the last couple of weeks, Labour has set out policies that offer a clear and credible choice for the country. We look forward to showing how Labour will stand up for the people of Britain.”

Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said: “This election is your chance to change the direction of our country.

“If you want to avoid a disastrous Hard Brexit. If you want to keep Britain in the Single Market. If you want a Britain that is open, tolerant and united, this is your chance.

Keith Taylor, a Green Party MEP for the South East, said: “Let’s be clear, this election will be a referendum on Brexit and the best opportunity we have of stopping the Britain committing an act of great self-harm. As Greens, we will be campaigning on a proudly, loudly pro-European platform.”

The election is set to take place on Thursday June 8.

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Be part of it.</s>Sussex voters are set to head to the polls in June as Prime Minister Theresa May has announced a snap general election.

The Conservatives under David Cameron won a narrow majority in the House of Commons back in 2015, with the SNP making massive gains in Scotland, while the Lib Dems losing all but eight of their MPs.

In Sussex the Tories comfortably held on to all their seats, apart from Hove, snatching both Lewes and Eastbourne from the Liberal Democrats.

Caroline Lucas is the only Green MP, having represented Brighton Pavilion since 2010, while Labour’s Peter Kyle represents Hove.

Outside the steps of Number 10 Downing Street this morning, Mrs May said: “Britain is leaving the European Union and there can be no turning back, and as we look to the future the Government has the right plan for negotiating our new relationship with Europe.”

She accused the other parties of ‘game playing’ and argued that ‘division in Westminster will put at risk our ability to make a success of Brexit’.

Mrs May said: “We need a general election and we need it now.”

In a statement, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said: “I welcome the Prime Minister’s decision to give the British people the chance to vote for a government that will put the interests of the majority first.

Labour will be offering the country an effective alternative to a government that has failed to rebuild the economy, delivered falling living standards and damaging cuts to our schools and NHS.

“In the last couple of weeks, Labour has set out policies that offer a clear and credible choice for the country. We look forward to showing how Labour will stand up for the people of Britain.”

Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said: “This election is your chance to change the direction of our country.

“If you want to avoid a disastrous Hard Brexit. If you want to keep Britain in the Single Market. If you want a Britain that is open, tolerant and united, this is your chance.

Keith Taylor, a Green Party MEP for the South East, said: “Let’s be clear, this election will be a referendum on Brexit and the best opportunity we have of stopping the Britain committing an act of great self-harm. As Greens, we will be campaigning on a proudly, loudly pro-European platform.”

The election is set to take place on Thursday June 8.

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Be part of it.</s>LONDON
• British lawmakers yesterday overwhelmingly backed Prime Minister Theresa May's call for a snap election, paving the way for a June vote that she hopes will give her a "mandate to complete Brexit".

Mrs May surprised allies and opponents on Tuesday when she announced her plan to bring forward an election that was not due until 2020, saying she needed to avoid a clash of priorities in the sensitive final stages of the two-year Brexit talks, reported Reuters.

After addressing a rowdy session of the House of Commons, Mrs May won the support of 522 lawmakers in the 650-seat Parliament for an election on June 8, an easy victory for the Prime Minister, who could see her majority increase by at least 100 seats in the poll.

"I believe that, at this moment of enormous national significance, there should be unity here in Westminster, not division," Mrs May told Parliament. "A general election will provide the country with five years of strong and stable leadership to see us through the negotiations and ensure we are able to go on to make a success as a result, and that is crucial."

In a sign of the key campaign issues ahead, Mrs May traded barbs in the Commons with opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, whose party is deeply divided and languishing up to 20 points behind the Conservatives, reported Agence France-Presse. Mr Corbyn accused the government of "broken promises" on health, education and the economy during its seven years in office. Mrs May hit back that Labour offered only "bankruptcy and chaos", but denied she was complacent, saying: "We will be out there fighting for every vote."
• Critics say snap elections have mainly been used by British leaders to hold early votes when it benefited their own parties. In response to that criticism, the then ruling coalition of Conservatives and Liberal Democrats passed the Fixed-Term Parliaments Act in 2011 to prevent future snap elections from being used as a political tool. Under that law, general elections are supposed to be held on a regular five-year schedule, with the next vote due in 2020. Technically, there are now only two ways to call early elections. The House of Commons can pave the way for an early vote by approving it with a two-thirds majority, or it can defeat the prime minister in a vote of confidence and have that result stand for two weeks.

Labour's top ranks convened an emergency meeting after Mrs May's announcement on Tuesday, where Mr Corbyn told MPs he did not underestimate the task ahead, but "let's get out there".

Several Labour lawmakers told The Guardian they felt their leader was too hasty in supporting a snap election based on Mrs May's terms and in a climate of national instability because of Brexit.

In a worrying sign for Labour, three of its MPs have already announced they will not stand again.

Former British finance minister George Osborne, a Conservative who is a key opponent of Brexit, also said yesterday he was quitting Parliament, but would "go on fighting" for Britain as editor of London's Evening Standard newspaper. "I am stepping down from the House of Commons - for now," he wrote in a letter to his constituents.

For Scotland's First Minister, Ms Nicola Sturgeon, the move was a "huge political miscalculation" that could help the Scottish National Party's (SNP's) efforts to hold an independence vote, reported Reuters. "If the SNP wins this election in Scotland and the Tories (Conservatives) don't, then Theresa May's attempt to block our mandate to give the people of Scotland a choice over their own future when the time is right will crumble to dust," she said.

The president of the European Commission, Mr Jean-Claude Juncker, believes "real" Brexit talks will only start after British snap elections, an EU spokesman said yesterday. Mr Juncker had spoken to Mrs May on Tuesday after her call for early elections.

The spokesman noted that this did not mean there will be a delay in Brexit talks, "because negotiations were meant to start in June regardless of the UK government's decision to call an election on the 8th".

May can secure her mandate on Europe

Brexit gambit clever but not smart</s>Prime Minister Theresa May has called a snap election for June 8.

Here is Mrs May's full statement made outside 10 Downing Street at 11am this morning.

"I have just chaired a meeting of the Cabinet, where we agreed that the Government should call a general election, to be held on June 8.

"I want to explain the reasons for that decision, what will happen next and the choice facing the British people when you come to vote in this election.

"Last summer, after the country voted to leave the European Union, Britain needed certainty, stability and strong leadership, and since I became prime minister the Government has delivered precisely that.

"Despite predictions of immediate financial and economic danger, since the referendum we have seen consumer confidence remain high, record numbers of jobs, and economic growth that has exceeded all expectations.

"We have also delivered on the mandate that we were handed by the referendum result.

"Britain is leaving the European Union and there can be no turning back.

"And as we look to the future, the Government has the right plan for negotiating our new relationship with Europe.

"We want a deep and special partnership between a strong and successful European Union and a United Kingdom that is free to chart its own way in the world.

"That means we will regain control of our own money, our own laws and our own borders and we will be free to strike trade deals with old friends and new partners all around the world.

"This is the right approach, and it is in the national interest. But the other political parties oppose it.

"At this moment of enormous national significance there should be unity here in Westminster, but instead there is division.

"The country is coming together, but Westminster is not.

"In recent weeks Labour has threatened to vote against the deal we reach with the European Union.

"The Liberal Democrats have said they want to grind the business of government to a standstill.

"The Scottish National Party say they will vote against the legislation that formally repeals Britain's membership of the European Union.

"And unelected members of the House of Lords have vowed to fight us every step of the way.

"Our opponents believe that because the Government's majority is so small, our resolve will weaken and that they can force us to change course.

"They under-estimate our determination to get the job done and I am not prepared to let them endanger the security of millions of working people across the country."

The Fixed-Term Parliaments Act means the snap general election can only happen if two-thirds of MPs vote for it in the Commons. The vote is due to be held tomorrow.</s>Theresa May has called a General Election for June 8th. The Prime Minister is just two years into a five year parliamentary term and had recently stated that there would be no snap election while the Brexit negotiations took place.

It seems the election has been prompted by a combination of opinion polls giving the Conservatives a near-20-point lead over second-placed Labour, and the prospect of pressing ahead with the Brexit agenda with a majority of just twelve.

However with more than a dozen Conservative MPs being investigated for possible breach of election expenses rules – and a very slender Conservative majority in the House of Commons – it might be that this is a jump now to avoid being pushed later.

“I have just chaired a meeting of the cabinet, where we agreed that the government should call a general election, to be held on 8 June. “I want to explain the reasons for that decision, what will happen next and the choice facing the British people when you come to vote in this election. “Last summer, after the country voted to leave the European Union, Britain needed certainty, stability and strong leadership, and since I became prime minister the government has delivered precisely that. “Despite predictions of immediate financial and economic danger, since the referendum we have seen consumer confidence remain high, record numbers of jobs, and economic growth that has exceeded all expectations. “We have also delivered on the mandate that we were handed by the referendum result. Britain is leaving the European Union and there can be no turning back.

The Brexit referendum result and the government’s pursuit of a “hard Brexit” has caused extensive disquiet including among LGBT equality campaigners who note that most LGBT rights battles in the UK have been won not through Westminster action but through European court rulings and legislation.

Today’s opinion polls suggest the most likely outcome of the election is a bigger Conservative majority more able to bring about that “hard Brexit” – with Conservative losses to the Lib Dems more than offset by Labour losses to the Conservatives.</s>Sussex voters are set to head to the polls in June as Prime Minister Theresa May has announced a snap general election.

The Conservatives under David Cameron won a narrow majority in the House of Commons back in 2015, with the SNP making massive gains in Scotland, while the Lib Dems losing all but eight of their MPs.

In Sussex the Tories comfortably held on to all their seats, apart from Hove, snatching both Lewes and Eastbourne from the Liberal Democrats.

Caroline Lucas is the only Green MP, having represented Brighton Pavilion since 2010, while Labour’s Peter Kyle represents Hove.

Outside the steps of Number 10 Downing Street this morning, Mrs May said: “Britain is leaving the European Union and there can be no turning back, and as we look to the future the Government has the right plan for negotiating our new relationship with Europe.”

She accused the other parties of ‘game playing’ and argued that ‘division in Westminster will put at risk our ability to make a success of Brexit’.

Mrs May said: “We need a general election and we need it now.”

In a statement, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said: “I welcome the Prime Minister’s decision to give the British people the chance to vote for a government that will put the interests of the majority first.

Labour will be offering the country an effective alternative to a government that has failed to rebuild the economy, delivered falling living standards and damaging cuts to our schools and NHS.

“In the last couple of weeks, Labour has set out policies that offer a clear and credible choice for the country. We look forward to showing how Labour will stand up for the people of Britain.”

Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said: “This election is your chance to change the direction of our country.

“If you want to avoid a disastrous Hard Brexit. If you want to keep Britain in the Single Market. If you want a Britain that is open, tolerant and united, this is your chance.

Keith Taylor, a Green Party MEP for the South East, said: “Let’s be clear, this election will be a referendum on Brexit and the best opportunity we have of stopping the Britain committing an act of great self-harm. As Greens, we will be campaigning on a proudly, loudly pro-European platform.”

The election is set to take place on Thursday June 8.

What do you think? Comment below or email the newsdesk.

To register to vote click here.

Don’t miss out on all the latest breaking news where you live.

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Be part of it.</s>British Prime Minister Theresa May called for a surprise 'snap' election Tuesday, ending months of speculation as to whether she will pull the trigger in order to exploit the weaknesses of the opposition Labour Party and strengthen the government's Brexit position.

But May can't just simply order an election to be held. Instead, she needs approval by a parliamentary supermajority. Here, a guide to the process:

Why can't she just call an election?

It's due to a law introduced under her predecessor as Prime Minister, David Cameron. Until 2010, prime ministers could call an election whenever they wanted. The coalition government of then-Prime Minister Cameron introduced the Fixed-Term Parliaments Bill, which his administration said would be a way to remove the unchecked right of the prime minister to dissolve Parliament and trigger the election for " pure political gain ."

"For the first time in our history, the timing of general elections will not be a plaything of governments and Prime Ministers will no longer have the power to go to the polls at a time of their own choosing," Deputy Nick Clegg told lawmakers during the bill's second reading in Sept. 2010. "Instead, there will be greater stability in our political system and people will know exactly how long a parliament can be expected to last."

The Fixed-term Parliaments Act (FTPA) came into law a year later and provided a fixed polling day for general elections— held every five years on the first Thursday in May. The next election is due to take place in May 2020.

So how is she planning to hold one?

The FTPA allows for two ways for the fixed five-year term to be cut short:

May has chosen the first option, which requires a parliamentary vote scheduled for Wednesday.

Under the terms of the FTPA, May will need 434 out of the total 650 lawmakers in the House of Commons to back her. This means May needs more than 100 lawmakers from opposition parties to vote for an early election, as her party only has 330 seats.

Is there a risk of her losing?

It's highly unlikely. Opposition parties will find it hard to vote against the chance to defeat the Conservative Party at the ballot, despite the vulnerability of some of their seats. Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, whose party holds the most seats in opposition, has already said his lawmakers will vote for an election on Wednesday.

During her speech on Tuesday, May goaded the opposition to pass her Wednesday motion. "This is your moment to show you mean it, to show you are not opposing the Government for the sake of it, to show that you do not treat politics as a game" she said. "Let us tomorrow vote for an election, let us put forward our plans for Brexit and our alternative programmes for government and then let the people decide" she said.</s>On the steps of 10 Downing Street, Theresa May did not call a General Election.

It doesn't work that way anymore.

The Fixed-Term Parliaments Act introduced by the coalition Government in 2011 makes it harder for a Prime Minister to call a snap general election, but by no means impossible.

Before then, a Prime Minister could call an election whenever he or she chose within a five year limit, giving just six weeks notice.

The Fixed-Term Parliaments Act gave a specific date for general elections to take place every five years, but there are ways to get round it.

Now, Theresa May has in effect challenged the Labour Party to grant her the election she wants.

She has selected the less controversial of the two methods available to her - calling a Parliamentary vote on the matter which must be passed by a two thirds majority.

By this method, Theresa May could only get the General Election she wanted with considerable backing from Labour.

The vast majority of Labour MPs, if not all Labour MPs, know their prospects are bleak. But an opposition party effectively turning down the chance of an election would be unprecedented, and humiliating in the extreme.

But these are unprecedented times.

In her statement, Theresa May told Labour it would have to choose whether it wanted opposition for opposition's sake. And whether it wanted to 'treat politics as a game.

For his part, Jeremy Corbyn has long said he would support the vote for a general election were one to be called.

Her other option, by the way, would have been to call for a no confidence motion in her own government.

The act did not change the ruling that If the House of Commons passes a vote of no confidence in the government, then Parliament is dissolved and an election must be held.

A governing party with a majority would have the numbers to pass a no confidence motion in its own government, which would trigger a general election. This is a particularly inelegant solution and it is no surprise Theresa May chose not to use it.

When Gordon Brown became Prime Minister in 2007 and enjoyed a surge in popularity, he allowed speculation to mount that he would call an election. When he eventually summoned Andrew Marr to Number 10 to tell him there would not be one, his credibility never fully recovered.</s>LONDON — In a shock announcement, Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday called for an early general election to be held June 8 to seek a strong mandate as she negotiates Britain's exit from the European Union.

Standing outside 10 Downing Street, May said she would ask the House of Commons on Wednesday to back her call for an election, just two years after the last vote and three years before the next scheduled date in May 2020.

She said that since Britons voted to leave the EU in June, the country had come together, but politicians had not. She said the political divisions "risk our ability to make a success of Brexit."

At present, May's governing Conservatives have a small majority, with 330 seats in the 650-seat House of Commons.

With the main opposition Labour Party weakened and divided under left-wing leader Jeremy Corbyn and the pro-EU Liberal Democrats holding just nine Commons seats, May is calculating that the election will bring her an expanded crop of Conservative lawmakers.

That would make it easier for her to ignore opposition calls for a softer EU exit — making compromises to retain some benefits of membership — and to face down hardliners within her own party who want a no-compromise "hard Brexit" that many economists fear could be devastating.

May triggered a two-year countdown to Britain's exit from the EU last month, and high-stakes negotiations to settle divorce terms and agree on a new relationship are expected to start within weeks.

European Council President Donald Tusk tweeted that he had a "good phone call" with May about the election, and the council said the bloc's Brexit plans were unchanged by the announcement. Leaders of EU states are due to adopt negotiating guidelines at an April 29 summit, and the bloc will prepare detailed plans for the talks with Britain by late May.

May took office in July following an internal Conservative leadership contest, after predecessor David Cameron stepped down when voters rejected his call to remain in the EU. Since then she had repeatedly ruled out calling an early election to get her own mandate.

But May said Tuesday she had "reluctantly" changed her mind.

"We need a general election and we need one now," she said.

May said that if there is not an election soon, "the negotiations with the European Union will reach their most difficult stage in the run-up to the next scheduled election."

"Division in Westminster will risk our ability to make a success of Brexit and it will cause damaging uncertainty and instability to the country," she said.

May said that "our opponents believe that because the government's majority is so small, our resolve will weaken and that they can force us to change course" on leaving the EU.

"They are wrong," she said. "They underestimate our determination to get the job done and I am not prepared to let them endanger the security of millions of working people across the country."

Under Britain's Fixed-Term Parliaments Act, elections are held every five years, but the prime minister can call a snap election if two-thirds of lawmakers vote for it.

That is highly likely to happen on Wednesday. Labour Party leader Corbyn said he welcomed May's decision "to give the British people the chance to vote for a government that will put the interests of the majority first."

Labour campaigned for Britain to remain in the EU, but Corbyn says he will respect voters' decision to leave. He said Labour would fight the election promising a fairer society and economy, and "a Brexit that works for all."

Polls give May's Conservatives a double-digit lead on Labour. But the election is still a risk for May, and could widen divisions within the United Kingdom. The country voted 52-48 percent to leave the EU, but Scotland backed remaining by a large majority, and Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is seeking to hold a referendum on independence from the U.K.

Sturgeon said Tuesday that May was seeking "to crush the voices of people who disagree with her."

She said it was "all the more important that Scotland is protected from a Tory (Conservative) Party which now sees the chance of grabbing control of government for many years to come and moving the U.K. further to the right - forcing through a hard Brexit and imposing deeper cuts in the process."

The Scottish National Party currently holds 54 of Scotland's 59 seats in the British Parliament, making it the third-largest party there.

The pound surged 0.7 percent against the dollar to $1.2658 after May's announcement, recovering from a 0.4 percent drop an hour earlier as rumors swirled about the surprise statement.</s>Sussex voters are set to head to the polls in June as Prime Minister Theresa May has announced a snap general election.

The Conservatives under David Cameron won a narrow majority in the House of Commons back in 2015, with the SNP making massive gains in Scotland, while the Lib Dems losing all but eight of their MPs.

In Sussex the Tories comfortably held on to all their seats, apart from Hove, snatching both Lewes and Eastbourne from the Liberal Democrats.

Caroline Lucas is the only Green MP, having represented Brighton Pavilion since 2010, while Labour’s Peter Kyle represents Hove.

Outside the steps of Number 10 Downing Street this morning, Mrs May said: “Britain is leaving the European Union and there can be no turning back, and as we look to the future the Government has the right plan for negotiating our new relationship with Europe.”

She accused the other parties of ‘game playing’ and argued that ‘division in Westminster will put at risk our ability to make a success of Brexit’.

Mrs May said: “We need a general election and we need it now.”

In a statement, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said: “I welcome the Prime Minister’s decision to give the British people the chance to vote for a government that will put the interests of the majority first.

Labour will be offering the country an effective alternative to a government that has failed to rebuild the economy, delivered falling living standards and damaging cuts to our schools and NHS.

“In the last couple of weeks, Labour has set out policies that offer a clear and credible choice for the country. We look forward to showing how Labour will stand up for the people of Britain.”

Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said: “This election is your chance to change the direction of our country.

“If you want to avoid a disastrous Hard Brexit. If you want to keep Britain in the Single Market. If you want a Britain that is open, tolerant and united, this is your chance.

Keith Taylor, a Green Party MEP for the South East, said: “Let’s be clear, this election will be a referendum on Brexit and the best opportunity we have of stopping the Britain committing an act of great self-harm. As Greens, we will be campaigning on a proudly, loudly pro-European platform.”

The election is set to take place on Thursday June 8.

What do you think? Comment below or email the newsdesk.

To register to vote click here.

Don’t miss out on all the latest breaking news where you live.

Here are four ways you can be sure you’ll be amongst the first to know what’s going on.

4) Register with us by clicking on ‘sign in’ (top right corner). You can then receive our daily newsletter AND add your point of view to stories that you read here.

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Be part of it.
British Prime Minister Theresa May proposes that a snap election for the House of Commons will be held on the 8th of June. A two-thirds majority of the House of Commons is needed to approve this, eventually tomorrow. The Labour and Liberal Democrats party leaders have expressed their support.