British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced that the country will hold a general election on July 4.

“I spoke with His Majesty the King to request the dissolution of parliament. The king has granted this request and we will have a general election on July 4,” Sunak said at 10 Downing Street.

The prime minister’s announcement came after new figures showed that the country’s inflation rate had fallen sharply to 2.3 per cent, its lowest level in nearly three years.

The ruling Conservative Party considers this a heartening achievement.

The prime minister’s five pledges in January 2023 included halving inflation, which had climbed to above 11 per cent at the end of 2022.

Sunak said the latest figures mark a “major moment for the economy” and that “brighter days are ahead.”

The Conservatives have been in power for 14 years but have faced challenges in recent years, ranging from slow economic growth to political instability, demonstrated by frequent changes of party leadership.

The Tories lag behind their main rival, the Labour Party, in the latest YouGov polls, NAN reports.