MAY VOWS TO SLASH IMMIGRATION

LONDON British Prime Minister Theresa May revealed her core election promises Thursday, saying she will slash immigration and take Britain definitively out of the EU, then build a “great meritocracy” by giving the poor a helping hand and lifting barriers to social mobility.

May’s platform for the June 8 election marks a big shift away from the strongly pro- business, free- market policies of past Conservative governments. She said leaving the EU offers the chance to build “stronger, fairer, more prosperous Britain” based on “a new contract between government and people.”

The Conservative election manifesto renews a promise to reduce net immigration to below 100,000 — a vow the party has made and broken since 2010. It sets no date by which Britain will reach the goal. Many Britons who voted last year to leave the EU were motivated by a desire to control immigration.