People of Nottingham have called for a general election after Rishi Sunak was confirmed as the UKs new Prime Minister on Monday, November 24. The former Chancellor was announced as the country's new leader after his rival, Penny Mordaunt, withdrew from the race.
Boris Johnson pulled out of the contest on Sunday (October 23) and Ms Mordaunt then withdrew minutes before the deadline to secure the threshold of the backing of 100 MPs needed to progress to the next stage of the leadership contest. It came after a turbulent 44 days in charge for Liz Truss, who became the shortest-serving Prime Minister in British history when she announced she would step down in a statement outside 10 Downing Street on Thursday, October 20.
But MPs and well-known figures have called for a general election. Mr Sunak was accused by Labour’s deputy leader, Angela Rayner, of “dodging scrutiny” and she called for voters to have their say on matters.
Read more: Rishi Sunak says 'mistakes were made' by Truss in first PM speech
Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister and Scottish National party leader, congratulated Mr Sunak. But she said: “He should call an early general election. And he should not – must not – unleash another round of austerity. Our public services will not withstand that.” Ed Davey, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, added: "Conservative MPs have installed another out-of-touch prime minister without giving you a say. We need a general election now.”
And on the streets of Nottingham, people also called for a general election. Teaching assistant, Eleven Parker, 40, said: “There should be a general election. We all have individual rights and opinions and we all need a vote to get what we want.”
Mariah Burrows, 28, who is a retail worker from Bingham, said: “We are the people; we are the Government, yet we don’t get any say. It’s all about freedom of speech and democracy, yet we haven’t got any democracy.”
Carlton teacher Tom Shirley, 32, was also in favour of a general election. "This party is just messing everything up. They only focus on the rich and wealthy and are only catering for one aspect of the country." Retired teacher Ros Pitcher, 70, said: “I understand that they don’t constitutionally need one but there needs to be one - a bit more honesty.”
However, other people in the city, and some readers making comment under a Nottinghamshire Live Facebook post, said a general election wasn't necessary. Retired Linda Marshall, a 74-year-old Top Valley resident, said: “I don’t think a general election is necessary. I support whoever they put in. But my favourite was Boris.
"Yes, he made some mistakes and he’s not perfect but he’s human like the rest of us and he apologised. There was only one perfect person and he was crucified. Either way, the general election won’t make a difference.”
Ann Bell said: "Last week I would have agreed that a general election was what we needed. However this week I feel more inclined to say give the new PM chance as he does seem to have more of a clue."
Karen Bonser wrote on Facebook: "We need stability and there’s work to be done and quickly to improve the economy. A general election now would stall everything again… Let's see if Rishi stabilises the country, fingers crossed, then we can see how the land lies. A general election will come soon enough."
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