British Prime Minister Theresa May announces UK election for June 8

British Prime Minister Theresa May has announced a snap UK election will take place on June 8.

She called for the election on Tuesday saying Britain's opposition parties risked worsening her negotiating hand in divorce talks with the European Union by opposing her Brexit plan.

The Prime Minister had repeatedly denied that she would call an election before the next scheduled poll in 2020.

But following a cabinet meeting at Downing Street she said she would take the vote to the country this year.

"It was with reluctance that I decided the country needs this election, but it is with strong conviction that I say it is necessary to secure the strong and stable leadership the country needs to see us through Brexit and beyond," she said on the doorstep of her Downing Street office.

Justifying the decision, Mrs May said: “The country is coming together but Westminster is not.”

The rumour mill went into overdrive this morning when Downing Street announced the surprise statement.

May, who was appointed Prime Minister after the country voted in favor of Brexit in June last year, enjoys a large lead in the opinion polls, with 50 per cent saying she would be the best prime minister. The leader of the main opposition Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, won 14 per cent, pollster YouGov said.

Some believed that Mrs May was set to resign over ill health as Downing Street has always denied she would call a vote before the next scheduled poll in 2020.

The Fixed-Term Parliaments Act sets the general election date as the first Thursday in May every five years, meaning 2020 is the next expected contest.

Mrs May now needs two-thirds of MPs in the Commons to vote for and early election and Jeremy Corbyn has previously indicated Labour would support such a move.

A Number 10 source told Yahoo UK the Prime Minister has been “clear and consistent in her position: that she does not think there should be” an early general election, while another added: “It’s not going to happen.”

But with a Commons working majority of just 17, and a healthy opinion poll lead over Labour, senior Tories previously suggested Mrs May should go to the country in order to strengthen her Parliamentary position.

Such a move would also give a mandate both for her leadership and her negotiating position on Brexit before talks with the European Union start in earnest.