The UK holds a general election on Thursday for a new parliament and government - with all signs pointing to a sea change after almost a decade and a half. The formerly ruling Conservatives are widely expected to be replaced by a Labour party back from its own humiliation five years ago. CGTN’s Michael Voss reports.
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00:00Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been touring the country putting on a brave
00:04face, but his message, don't give Labour a super majority, is an admission that the
00:10Conservative Party could face its worst election losses in decades. At a rally in
00:16London on Tuesday night, Sunak urged supporters not to give up hope.
00:21I say to every Conservative, don't surrender to Labour, fight for every vote,
00:27fight for our values. Rishi Sunak is the fifth Conservative party leader in 14
00:33years. Boris Johnson won a huge majority at the last election but his scandal
00:39ridden administration saw him resign, followed by Liz Truss whose unfunded
00:45budget spooked the financial markets. If there's one defining legacy of the past
00:5014 years it's Brexit. It remains a highly divisive issue but one that didn't
00:56feature prominently in this election. Instead it's the deteriorating state of
01:02the National Health Service and the cost of living crisis. The front-runner is
01:08Labour's Keir Starmer who was out campaigning in Wales on Wednesday
01:12morning repeating his core message, it's time for change. We have to say over and
01:17over again, change only happens if you vote for it. Change only happens if you
01:24vote for it. In the 2019 election Labour suffered a humiliating defeat under the
01:29hard-left leadership of Jeremy Corbyn who's since been dropped from the party.
01:34The leader of the Liberal Democrats has spent the entire campaign performing
01:39stunts to gain media attention. He spent Wednesday morning campaigning in
01:43Conservative heartlands in the south of England where the party hopes
01:47disillusioned Conservatives will turn to them rather than Labour, making them the
01:53country's third largest party. One unknown is how Nigel Farage's populist
01:59anti-immigration Reform Party will fare. The Conservative Party has failed to
02:04stem the flow of illegal migrants crossing the channel from France. Reform
02:10may not win many seats but is likely to take votes away from the Conservatives.
02:15The polls close at 10 p.m. local time on Thursday. Britain's future will become
02:21clearer shortly after. Michael Voss CGTN, London.