Watch as Sunderland voters say it's 'time for change' after General Election announcement

Voters have said “it’s time for a change” of government after prime minister Rishi Sunak announced yesterday evening (May 22) there will be a General Election on July 4.

Speaking on the steps of Downing Street, the Prime Minister confirmed on May 22 how the King had granted permission to dissolve Parliament with the country’s political parties now set to embark on six-weeks of campaigning.

It was a surprise decision, even for some Tory MPs, with the common political consensus that an election would be held in the autumn.

For friends Eileen Johnson and Mary Spice, the election “can’t come soon enough”.

They were among voters we spoke to who were out shopping at The Galleries in Washington.

Labour voter Mary, 62, said: “There has been so much corruption and scandal with this Government, particularly with partygate during the Covid pandemic.

“A lot of people lost friends and family members. They couldn’t see them in hospital or go to funerals, while there were parties going on in Downing Street.

“People won’t forget that and I think it will still be in people’s minds when they come to vote.

“It’s definitely time for a change.”

Fellow Labour voter Eileen Johnson, 70, said: “This last five years has been chaos. This is the worst period of government I can remember, particularly in terms of stability.

“We’ve had three different prime minister’s - Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishis Sunak - during one term of office.

“People are struggling with mortgages and the cost of living, the NHS has been run into the ground and we also have the ongoing situation with illegal immigration.”

“Hopefully Keir Starmer will make a good prime minister. He gets criticised for lacking charisma but at least he is honest and down to earth.” With the recent Sunday Times Rich List identifying Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty as having a wealth of £651million - ranking them above the King - Eileen and Mary feel he is “out of touch with ordinary people”.

Mary said: “He is worth an obscene amount of money and there is no way he can empathise with normal life.”

Eileen added: “He tries to make out he knows what it is like for normal people, but he hasn’t go a clue.”

Washington pensioner Peter Gilroy has also welcomed the announcement and said he will be voting for Labour.

The 69-year-old said: “I think it’s time for a change of Government. I think Labour will get in this time as I think a lot of people will remember what happened during Covid.

“Rishi Sunak is worth hundreds of millions of pounds and just doesn’t realise what it is like at the moment for ordinary people.

“As a pensioner I get about £800 each month and I’m really struggling at the moment.

“We need more support as the rise in pensions simply doesn’t match with the current cost of living.

“The NHS also needs a big input of money and we need to tackle illegal immigration.”

As with all elections, the floating vote and whether they opt for red or blue will no doubt prove decisive, and one of those undecided about which box to tick on the ballot sheet is pensioner Ron Barella.

Ron, 77, said: “It is going to be a tough one as I don’t like Starmer. I do like Sunak, and he came in at such a difficult time for the country, but there have also been so many misdemeanours from Tory MPs.

“There have been so many disasters and they all seem to be knifing each other in the back.

“I think many people will be disappointed with how the NHS has been rundown but I also think the unions have had a role to play in causing disruption and chaos with the strikes.

“I’m still undecided. I’m not a Keir Starmer fan, but I do think Labour will win.”

Another undecided voter is David Downey, 53, who is generally a Labour voter.

He said: “I need to praise Rishi Sunak for the furlough scheme he introduced during the pandemic, however I think it’s a bit of a poisoned chalice for whoever gets in.

“My wife works for the NHS and it is in a mess. Part of me feels like the Conservative Party has got the NHS into this state and so it should be down to them to dig it out.

“It will be close, but I can still see the Conservative Party winning. I think a lot of people will go into the voting booth undecided and and will then just go with who they normally vote for.”

Tory voter Ron Todd has defended the Government’s record “in difficult circumstances” and feels Rishi Sunak decided to call a General Election after some “positive financial news” with inflation falling to its lowest rate in nearly three years.

He also feels the surprise announcement could be a tactic to “catch the Labour Party off-guard”.

Ron, 73, said: “I think the Government has done as well as can be expected under what has been very difficult circumstances.

“I certainly can’t see Labour coming in and doing any better. They will no doubt come in and give away a load of freebies and then it will left to the Tories to clean up the mess.

“I can be a last minute voter and if something was announced by the Conservatives that I didn’t like then I wouldn’t vote - I certainly wouldn’t vote for Labour.

“If I do vote, then it will definitely be for the Tories.”