GENERAL Elections in the UK have to be held within five years of each other, but will there be an election before Brexit?
Boris Johnson hinted at a snap general election for October 14 if MPs block a No Deal Brexit this week. Here’s what you need to know about when we are likely to next head to the polls.
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Will there be a General Election before Brexit?
The PM now believes he needs a fresh mandate from voters to prise a new deal from EU leaders if he loses to Tory rebels in the next few days in the Commons.
In a clear threat to rebel MPs, the PM tonight warned he would never go to Brussels and ask for Jeremy Corbyn’s “pointless” extension.
This would leave him with no option but to go for a general election if enough Tory MPs side with the rebel plan this week.
And he is confident that he can win the vote, too, sending the country back to the polls for fourth time in just five years.
“There are no circumstances in which I will ask Brussels to delay,” he told the nation in an address on the steps of Downing Street this evening.
We are leaving on October 31, no ifs or buts.
Boris Johnson
“We are leaving on October 31, no ifs or buts.
“We will not accept any attempt to go back on our promises.
“I believe we will get a deal at that crucial summit in October.
“Let’s get Brexit done.”
Who can call a general election?
Under the Fixed Term Parliaments Act, every PM now needs two thirds of all MPs – 434 – to agree to go to the country before any election can be held.
If he pushed a dissolution vote in the Commons on Wednesday and enough MPs backed him – he could have a general election as early as Thursday, October 10.
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What is a General Election?
A General Election gives UK citizens a chance to select an MP to represent their local area in the House of Commons.
Normally there will be several candidates, each from a different political party, standing to be the Member of Parliament in each constituency.
The vote will also determine who will be elected as the UK Prime Minister.
The last General Election was held on June 8, 2017.
How often are general elections held in the UK?
General Elections have to be held at least every five years in the UK.
Previously elections could be called simply by the Prime Minister going to the Queen at any point within five years of the last one.
But after the Fixed Term Parliament Act was passed in 2011 the five-year gap was enshrined in law.
The act states that General Elections are to be held on the first Thursday in May every five years.
However, it has two provisos for the polls opening early.
Firstly: “A motion of no confidence passed in Her Majesty’s Government by a simple majority and 14 days elapses without the House passing a confidence motion in any new Government formed.”
And Secondly: “A motion for a General Election is agreed by two thirds of the total number of seats in the Commons including vacant seats (currently 434 out of 650).”
When is the next general election?
The next General Election is scheduled to be held on May 5, 2022, under the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011.
However, these dates could change if Boris calls a snap election.
The date of the last General Election was June 8, 2017, which saw the Conservatives lose their majority but remain in Government after they struck a deal with the DUP.
Theresa May called a shock snap election in 2017 to try and strengthen the Conservative’s hold on Parliament, but it backfired when her majority was slashed by 13 seats.
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Get Brexit done: Boris’ full speech
Five weeks ago I spoke to you from these steps and said that this Government was not going to hang around and that we would not wait until brexit day – October 31 – to deliver on the priorities of the British people.
And so I am proud to say that on Wednesday Chancellor Sajid Javid is going to set out the most ambitious spending round for more than a decade.
I said I wanted to make your streets safer – and that is why we are recruiting another 20,000 police officers.
I said I wanted to improve your hospital and reduce the waiting times at your GP.
And so we are doing 20 new hospital upgrades in addition to the extra £34 billion going into the NHS.
And I said I wanted every child in this country to have a superb education and that’s why I announced last week that we are levelling up funding across the country and spending much more next year in both primary and secondary schools.
And it is to push forward this agenda on these and many other fronts that we need a Queen’s speech in October.
While leaving due time to debate brexit and other matters.
And as we come to that brexit deadline I am encouraged by the progress we are making.
In the last few weeks the chances of a deal have been rising, I believe, for three reasons.
They can see that we want a deal.
They can see that we have a clear vision for our future relationship with the EU – something that has perhaps not always been the case.
And they can see that we are utterly determined to strengthen our position by getting ready to come out regardless, come what may
But if there is one thing that can hold us back in these talks it is the sense in Brussels that MPs may find some way to cancel the referendum
Or that tomorrow MPs will vote – with Jeremy Corbyn – for yet another pointless delay
I don’t think they will. I hope that they won’t
But if they do they will plainly chop the legs out from under the UK position and make any further negotiation absolutely impossible
And so I say, to show our friends in Brussels that we are united in our purpose, MPs should vote with the government against Corbyn’s pointless delay.
I want everybody to know – there are no circumstances in which I will ask Brussels to delay. We are leaving on 31 October, no ifs or buts.
We will not accept any attempt to go back on our promises or scrub that referendum
Armed and fortified with that conviction I believe we will get a deal at that crucial summit in October
A deal that parliament will certainly be able to scrutinise
And in the meantime let our negotiators get on with their work
Without that sword of Damocles over their necks
And without an election, which I don’t want and you don’t want
Let us get on with the people’s agenda – fighting crime, improving the NHS, boosting schools, cutting the cost of living, and unlocking talent and opportunity across the entire United Kingdom
With infrastructure education and technology
It is a massive agenda. Let’s come together and get it done – and let’s get Brexit done by October 31.
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