East Renfrewshire's Parliamentary appointees respond to the news of a General Election on June 8

Prime Minister Theresa May made the shock announcement from Downing Street this morning, despite having previously told the country there wouldn’t be a General Election until 2020.

Apparently, it’s all change then, with many commentators claiming that Ms May wants a full five-year term of office to sort Brexit out, and, that as things stand at present, her party have little in the way of opposition to another victory.

The Prime Minister said in her speech: “I have just chaired a meeting of the cabinet, where we agreed that the government should call a general election, to be held on 8 June.

“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 final agreement we reach with the European Union. The Liberal Democrats have said they want to grind the business of government to a standstill.

“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 because the government’s majority is so small, that our resolve will weaken and that they can force us to change course. They are wrong.”

Kirsten Oswald, MP for East Renfrewshire told The Extra: “Whatever happened to ‘Now is not the time’?

“It is clear that in a General Election on 8th June, it’s a straight choice here between the SNP who will always put the people of Scotland first, and the Tories who are determined to tack right, and drive through a hard Brexit and deeper cuts.

“It is my privilege to work hard, representing every person in East Renfrewshire, and I aim to continue doing that.”

Jackson Carlaw MSP and deputy leader of the Conservatives in Scotland said: “I very much welcome the Prime Minister’s announcement. The Scottish Conservatives are ready for a campaign, we are organised, and we are optimistic about the prospect of increasing our number of seats.

“In Scotland, we will have a clear election message - only a vote for the Scottish Conservatives will ensure we get the strong leadership we need to get the best Brexit deal for the whole country.

“And only a vote for the Scottish Conservatives will send a strong message that we oppose SNP’s divisive plan for a second referendum.

“We know the SNP will use this campaign to try and manufacture a case for separation. And with Jeremy Corbyn having already said he is ‘absolutely fine’ with an immediate referendum, we also know that Labour can’t be relied to stand up to them.

“By contrast, the Scottish Conservatives have the strength right across Scotland to stand up for people who oppose the SNP’s plans.

“The choice is simple: it’s between a strong government led by Theresa May working to get the best Brexit deal, or a weak Labour government, led by Jeremy Corbyn, which cannot stand up to the SNP.

“The Scottish Conservatives will be fighting a Scotland-wide campaign in this election. Our aim is to gain support all over the country. We will be fighting for every vote.”

Labour’s West of Scotland regional list MSP Neil Bibby commented: “The Labour Party is ready and has been preparing for an early General Election. We will now start the process of selecting our candidates.

“The last General Election in East Renfrewshire was a close fight between the SNP and Labour. We stand ready to put our case to the people of East Renfrewshire once again.”