A bold decision – and the right one for Britain

PERHAPS the biggest surprise about Theresa May’s bold call for a snap election was that it came as such a surprise to the inhabitants of the Westminster village.

MPs were taken unawares. Seasoned political observers, when told the Prime Minister would make a statement after morning Cabinet, said they hadn’t a clue what it would be about.

One of the most eminent, Tory insider Lord Finkelstein, even suffered a Michael Fish- style ‘hurricane moment’, assuring his Twitter followers 20 minutes before the announcement: ‘It won’t be an election.’

Yet hasn’t it been increasingly clear for months that calling a snap ballot was fast becoming the Prime Minister’s only realistic option?

Indeed, the Mail believes this was not just a brave and shrewd decision. It was also her only way of clearing the political air, ending the dirty tricks of her Remoaner enemies and maximising her chances of driving the best possible deal for our country in the Brexit negotiations.

As for Mrs May’s timing, it says much for her steadiness of character that she so long resisted going to the country and cashing in on Opposition disarray.

She hesitated because, rightly, she believed voters wanted a period of stability after the General Election of 2015 and the referendum just 13 months later.

Indeed, it is through no wish of hers that delaying the election has become increasingly unrealistic. As she made clear yesterday, the blame for this lies squarely with Remoaners at Westminster.

Labour, Lib Dems, Scottish Nationalists and unelected peers — all have seized on the slimness of the Government’s majority to try to sabotage Brexit.

As the Prime Minister pointed out, bristling with controlled anger: ‘What they are doing jeopardises the work we must do to prepare for Brexit at home, and it weakens the Government’s negotiating position in Europe.

‘If we do not hold a General Election now, their political game-playing will continue and the negotiations with the EU will reach their most difficult stage in the run-up to the next scheduled election.’

The few weeks ahead, she said, offer a one-off opportunity to get a vote out of the way before the EU agrees its negotiating position and detailed talks begin.

Of course, no election is a foregone conclusion — and the pollsters, who give the Tories a seemingly unassailable lead, have proved wildly and repeatedly wrong.

But while complacency would be foolish — and Tory marginals in Remainer areas may be vulnerable to Lib Dems — it is hard to imagine a more auspicious time for Mrs May to increase her majority.

As the IMF confirmed yesterday, when it doubled its growth forecast for the UK, the economy continues to perform robustly — something that may no longer be so a year or two from now. Meanwhile, Jeremy Corbyn sinks ever lower, with another Labour MP yesterday giving up on politics in despair. Indeed, it is hard to remember a Labour leader who has looked more utterly unelectable.

This is why the Mail is absolutely convinced the key to Mrs May’s success lies in her ability to attract support from disaffected traditional Labour voters, particularly in the North, who switched to Ukip (whose main job is now done).

With this in mind, we urge Mrs May to return to the themes she spelled out on her first day in Downing Street, when she pledged to devote herself to hard-working families who are ‘just managing’ and build a Britain that works for everyone, not just the privileged few.

She must find the right narrative to persuade wavering Labour voters that they are as important to Britain’s future as those in the South-East. She must show them she’s determined to strike a better balance between their lack of prosperity and the obscene wealth in the City.

She must let them know she wants their young to have every bit as good a chance of going to grammar school as pupils in the Home Counties. If she can ram this message home, this paper believes she has the chance of a victory that could change the landscape of British politics for years.

Meanwhile, another advantage of an early election is that the Tory manifesto will give Mrs May her chance to win a mandate for reintroducing selective state education, which gave so many bright working-class children a leg up in life before bienpensant liberals kicked the ladder away.

It will also be her opportunity to reform the Lords, an increasingly bloated house of cronies and dodgy party donors that is no longer fit for purpose.

And is it too much to hope that at last we may see the end of David Cameron’s catastrophic commitment to spend 0.7 per cent of national output on foreign aid?

As this paper has long argued, it is inexcusable to squander taxpayers’ billions abroad while social care patients suffer neglect at home. At this time of terrifying global volatility, this money should be reallocated to care and national defence.

It is no secret that the Mail admires Mrs May. We were the first newspaper to support her leadership bid and we have liked what we have seen of her ever since.

Her low-key style — in which Cabinet ministers are encouraged to have views and she herself speaks only when she has something important to say — could hardly be more different from the Cameron chumocracy, whose business activities since they left office speak volumes about the sort of people they were.

So, yes, this is a wonderful opportunity for the lady to clear the air, while every vote she wins on June 8 will strengthen her hand in the vital EU negotiations ahead.

This was the right decision for Britain. The Mail wishes her every success.