Latest: Commons to vote on UK general election on Wednesday

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

But she said "division in Westminster will risk our ability to make a success of Brexit" and was a primary reason for the snap election call.

Explaining her change of heart on an early election, Mrs May said: "I have concluded the only way to guarantee certainty and security for the years ahead is to hold this election."

She concluded by saying it was "with reluctance" that she reached her decision but added: "It is with strong conviction that I believe it is necessary to secure a strong and stable leadership this country needs."

Watch live analysis on the decision here. 

Here is the full text of Prime Minister Theresa May’s statement from Downing Street announcing that a general election is to be held on June 8:

"I have just chaired a meeting of the Cabinet, where we agreed that the Government should call a general election, to be held on June 8.

"I want to explain the reasons for that decision, what will happen next and the choice facing the British people when you come to vote in this election.

"Last summer, after the country voted to leave the European Union, Britain needed certainty, stability and strong leadership, and since I became Prime Minister the Government has delivered precisely that.

"Despite predictions of immediate financial and economic danger, since the referendum we have seen consumer confidence remain high, record numbers of jobs, and economic growth that has exceeded all expectations.

"We have also delivered on the mandate that we were handed by the referendum result."

"Britain is leaving the European Union and there can be no turning back. And as we look to the future, the Government has the right plan for negotiating our new relationship with Europe.

"We want a deep and special partnership between a strong and successful European Union and a United Kingdom that is free to chart its own way in the world.

"That means we will regain control of our own money, our own laws and our own borders and we will be free to strike trade deals with old friends and new partners all around the world.

"This is the right approach, and it is in the national interest. But the other political parties oppose it.

"At this moment of enormous national significance there should be unity here in Westminster, but instead there is division.

"The country is coming together, but Westminster is not."

"In recent weeks Labour has threatened to vote against the deal we reach with the European Union.

"The Liberal Democrats have said they want to grind the business of government to a standsill.

"The Scottish National Party say they will vote against the legislation that formally repeals Britain’s membership of the European Union.

"And unelected members of the House of Lords have vowed to fight us every step of the way.

"Our opponents believe that because the Government’s majority is so small, our resolve will weaken and that they can force us to change course.

"They are wrong.

"They under-estimate our determination to get the job done and I am not prepared to let them endanger the security of millions of working people across the country.

"Because what they are doing jeopardises the work we must do to prepare for Brexit at home and it weakens the Government’s negotiating position in Europe.

"If we do not hold a general election now their political game-playing will continue, and the negotiations with the European Union will reach their most difficult stage in the run-up to the next scheduled election.

"Division in Westminster will risk our ability to make a success of Brexit and it will cause damaging uncertainty and instability to the country.

"So we need a general election and we need one now, because we have at this moment a one-off chance to get this done while the European Union agrees its negotiating position and before the detailed talks begin.

"I have only recently and reluctantly come to this conclusion.

"Since I became Prime Minister I have said that there should be no election until 2020, but now I have concluded that the only way to guarantee certainty and stability for the years ahead is to hold this election and seek your support for the decisions I must take.

"And so tomorrow I will move a motion in the House of Commons calling for a general election to be held on the eighth of June.

"That motion, as set out by the Fixed-Term Parliaments Act, will require a two-thirds majority of the House of Commons.

"So I have a simple challenge to the opposition parties, you have criticised the Government’s vision for Brexit, you have challenged our objectives, you have threatened to block the legislation we put before Parliament.

"This is your moment to show you mean it, to show you are not opposing the Government for the sake of it, to show that you do not treat politics as a game.

"Let us tomorrow vote for an election, let us put forward our plans for Brexit and our alternative programmes for government and then let the people decide.

"And the decision facing the country will be all about leadership. It will be a choice between strong and stable leadership in the national interest, with me as your Prime Minister, or weak and unstable coalition government, led by Jeremy Corbyn, propped up by the Liberal Democrats - who want to reopen the divisions of the referendum - and Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP.

"Every vote for the Conservatives will make it harder for opposition politicians who want to stop me from getting the job done.

"Every vote for the Conservatives will make me stronger when I negotiate for Britain with the prime ministers, presidents and chancellors of the European Union.

"Every vote for the Conservatives means we can stick to our plan for a stronger Britain and take the right long-term decisions for a more secure future.

"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.

"So, tomorrow, let the House of Commons vote for an election, let everybody put forward their proposals for Brexit and their programmes for Government, and let us remove the risk of uncertainty and instability and continue to give the country the strong and stable leadership it demands."

Earlier: British Prime Minister Theresa May is to make a statement in Downing Street at 11.15am after Cabinet.

In an unusual move, Number 10 did not announce what subject she would address but statements by the Prime Minister in the street are usually reserved for big announcements.

There is speculation that Mrs May could call a snap general election, although Downing Street has always denied she will 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.

But Mrs May could call an early election if two-thirds of MPs in the Commons vote for it and Jeremy Corbyn has previously indicated Labour would support such a move.

In March Downing Street strenuously denied Mrs May would call a vote before 2020.

A Number 10 source said 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 have 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.

The statement will follow a gathering of Mrs May’s senior ministers at the regular Cabinet meeting in Downing Street.

News of the pending statement sent the pound lower by 0.3% against the US dollar to trade at 1.251, having traded higher by around 0.17% earlier in the morning.

Versus the euro, the pound slumped more than 0.4% to trade at 1.175, losing previous gains of more than 0.1%.

More to follow

- PA