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Peter Davidson

What parties are saying on snap election after Boris Johnson wins confidence vote

Following Boris Johnson's narrow victory in the confidence vote the talk soon shifted to a snap election to let the public have its say on the future of the Prime Minister.

In an interview after the result was announced Johnson played down the prospect of holding an early General Election.

The latest opinion poll shows Labour leads by eight percentage points nationally, however that could rise following the vote on Monday evening.

With the Tories seeing a dip in the polls other parties are jumping on the idea of having a fourth election in seven years.

Johnson's authority faces further blows with tricky by-elections on June 23 in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, and Tiverton and Honiton in Devon.

So, here's what the parties think of the prospect of an early election:

Labour

Ian Murray, Labour MP for Edinburgh South, said it is "now a matter of when he (Mr Johnson) will go, rather than if".

He said that a snap election would be the "best way forward".

"If Boris Johnson thinks after last night's vote he can command the respect and support of the country, then why doesn't he take the short trip to Buckingham Palace, request that the Parliament and Government is dissolved, and go to the country and let the people decide?" Murray said.

"That would be the best way to resolve this situation."

While, Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner said: "The public have the power to remove Boris Johnson. He may think that he's bought himself a bit of time, but people never forget that they didn't get to say goodbye to their loved ones. The British public do not like liars, cheats and people that break the law.

"And I think that he is going to get absolutely hammered if he tries to have another general election on that basis."

SNP

The SNP's Westminster leader Ian Blackford relished the prospect of holding an early General Election following the confidence vote.

He told the BBC: "If we end up that a snap election is called, as far as I’m concerned, bring it on because it’s that opportunity to reinforce that people in Scotland want no more of what is happening here at Westminster.

"It’s an opportunity for the SNP to put our case to the people of Scotland one more time and to have that discussion in an election scenario on Scotland’s future."

Conservatives

Prime Minister Boris Johnson isn't keen on holding a snap General Election (Getty Images)

Following the wounding vote on Monday night the Prime Minister said he was not interested in any snap elections. Instead he said he wanted to get on with running the country.

He said: "I'm certainly not interested in snap elections."

While Scottish Tory MSP downplayed that a snap election could be called in the aftermath of the ballot, pointing to recent opinion polls placing the Tories in second place behind Labour.

He added that the results are "not good for the Conservative Party in general".

"The Government's trying to do some very good and worthy things, and this whole issue of the Prime Minister's leadership is like a dark shadow over all of the good things that the Government is doing,"

Lib Dems

Lib Dem MP for Orkney and Shetland Alistair Carmichael criticised the PM saying he's "politically finished".

He added: "It leaves him with very little authority in his own party and his own government.

"At a time when we are facing a cost of living crisis in the United Kingdom and when you have got some massive a strategic challenges across Europe, in particular, in Ukraine, but probably beyond that, as well.

"This is a moment where you need a Prime Minister who has got the authority to make the big calls.

"Whatever the fairness or otherwise of it of yesterday's vote he may have won arithmetically but politically he's finished."

It's been reported the Lib Dems have been preparing for a General Election for a number of months as they look to target Tory marginal seats across England.

When is the next General Election?

The next General Election is due to be held in May 2024 following the last vote in 2019 just before the coronavirus pandemic.

At the last election the Tories were able to achieve 365 seats in the Commons, achieving a majority of 87.

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