London, April 06: Amidst intense speculation that Britain is heading for a hung parliament, Prime Minister Gordon Brown will be travelling to the Buckingham Palace on Tuesday and request Queen Elizabeth to call general elections on May 6.
Prime Minister Brown is scheduled to travel to the Buckingham Palace at 10 am GMT (3.30 pm IST) on Tuesday, and make the formal announcement of the May 6 election at 10, Downing Street, at 11 am (4.30 pm IST).
Mr. Brown goes into the election with the claim that he is best suited to take Britain out of recession, while the Conservative leader promises to undo the alleged mistakes made by the Labour government over the past 13 years in office.
In the event of Labour or Conservative not winning a majority, the Liberal Democrats will have a key say in the formation of the next government — a scenario feared by economists and financial observers.
Economy remains the No. 1 election issue while the Brown government has made some tough announcements in recent months on immigration.
Recent polls have suggested that the Conservative lead over Labour has narrowed, fuelling widespread speculation that Britain is heading for a hung parliament.
For the first time in Britain, leaders of the three main parties — Brown (Labour), David Cameron (Conservative) and Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrats) — will hold three live U.S.-style television debates before the elections.
—–PTI