NORWICH, United Kingdom — British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has declared a general election to be held on July 4 . On May 22, a wet Wednesday afternoon, Sunak stood by himself at a lectern and revealed the date while addressing the country outside Downing Street. The Labour Party anthem , "Things Can Only Get Better," erupted from a nearby street as he pleaded with the people to back him.
As his words were drowned out, so was his suit, going from wet to saturated in about six minutes. From an optics perspective, it was not the most auspicious moment to hold a press briefing and open an election campaign. However, it goes beyond merely a junior civil servant's inability to bring him an umbrella.
It is symptomatic of a key policy problem, regarding immigration to Great Britain . It has been getting worse in recent years and could cost Sunak and his ruling Conservative Party their hold on power just as, across the pond, Americans bust open beer bottles, grill hot dogs, and watch fireworks on Independence Day in the United States. The day after Sunak's weather-challenged news conference, the Office for National Statistics released the annual net migration figures, which effectively made Conservatives seem like the party of open borders — a charge its members frequently fling at Labour rivals.
Government figures show 672,000 people entered the country between June 2022 and July 2023, a figure that could still be revised upward. Net migration has increased the number of people.