Theresa May Calls For Snap UK General Election To Get Brexit Support
by Tyler Durden
ZeroHedge.comApr 18, 2017
After a kneejerk move lower on headlines regarding a statement, Cable is surging now that UK PM May has surprised the nation with a snap election on June 8th, since Conservatives could enhance their parliamentary majority given the vast lead they currently hold in polls; meanwhile cable is surging as uncertainty over Brexit negotiations wanes.
GBPUSD is at its highest since early Feb on the news – breaking aboive its 200-day moving average for the first time since Brexit.
As we detailed earlier, in a stunning development, Theresa May announced she would seek an early general election for Britain on June 8 to obtain a direct mandate to take the country through the Brexit divorce with the EU. The decision, which comes just three weeks after the prime minister began the formal Brexit process, has shocked British politicians as they returned from their Easter break.
That said, the announcement has come as two polls over the weekend put the Conservatives 21 points ahead of Labour, a lead that is likely to greatly increase its existing working Commons majority of 17, which hardly means a major shock for the general direction the UK is heading.
As Bloomberg notes, May will hope that the election will strengthen her hand when it comes to negotiating Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union. However, in Brussels and across the EU, it is likely to be seen as merely adding to the unpredictability of relations with the U.K. Since June’s referendum
May had previously said categorically that the next general election would be held as scheduled in 2020, and many Conservative backbenchers had shown little enthusiasm for a vote. “It isn’t going to happen. There is not going to be a general election,” her spokesman said on March 20.
As the FT notes, the prime minister is understood to have changed her mind after taking advice from senior figures including Sir Lynton Crosby, mastermind of the 2015 election campaign. Two polls over the Easter weekend put the Conservatives 21 points ahead of Labour, a lead that is likely to greatly increase its existing working Commons majority of 17.
The Rest…HERE
