London – In a surprise announcement, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has called a general election on July 4 claiming that he has a plan for economic stability for the country.

Standing outside his Downing Street office in pouring rain on Wednesday afternoon, Mr Sunak said, “Now is the moment for Britain to choose its future and decide whether it wants to build on the progress we have made or risk going back to square one with no certainty,” he said.

Mr Sunak’s announcement came within hours of official figures showing that UK inflation slowed to 2.3%in the year to April, down from 3.2% in March. It marks its lowest level in nearly three years, largely driven by a downfall in the world energy prices. “The bright days are ahead,” declared Mr Sunak.

“I will prove to you a Conservative government led by me will not put our economic stability at risk,” he said.

The first British Prime Minister of South Asian origin, Mr Sunak said that early on Wednesday he had asked King Charles to dissolve Parliament on 30 May and he agreed.

Mr Sunak said there were uncertain times ahead and claimed that he and his government had a clear plan. In what looked like a US-style election, he also called upon the British voters  to choose between him and Keir Starmer, the labour leader.

Leader of the main opposition, Labour party,  Sir Starmer, called for change after 14 years of the Tory governments.  The “opportunity for change” is what the general election is about, he said.

“Labour wants to return Britain to the  service of working people,” he said. “Labour would put the country first and party second.”

“On July 4 you (voters) have the choice and together we can stop the chaos, we can turn the page, we can start to rebuild Britain and change our country,” said Starmer, the former head of the Crown Prosecution Service.

 Analysts say Prime Minister Sunak has gambled calling for elections in July as opinion polls show Labour party running about 20 percentage points ahead of the Conservatives. Many had anticipated general elections to be held in October-November 2024.

They, however, say the PM and his team may have thought it to be the most opportune moment to seek fresh mandate from the voters.