On Tuesday 18th April, the Prime Minister called for a General Election, and this was voted through by MPs the following day.
Richard Harrington, MP for Watford, says:
"I was elected in 2015 for what I thought was for 5 years. I wasn't expecting another General Election so soon but I think it's the right decision. It’s clear that the Prime Minister thought long and hard about this, and it wasn’t an easy decision. In the end, she had no choice. Labour have threatened to vote against the final agreement we reach with the EU, and the Liberal Democrats don’t want it to go ahead at all. With the triggering of Article 50 round the corner, we need stability and unity, and this decision ensures that.
If we don’t hold a General Election now, the political game playing will only continue. The Prime Minister can only have a strong negotiating hand with a strong election result behind her. This is a unique opportunity to get this done, otherwise we risk having a General Election when the negotiation process gets to its most critical stage.
Representing Watford and Abbots Langley for the last 7 years has been the best experience of my life and so I will be standing again for re-election on 8th June. I've met so many great people, helped so many fantastic causes and seen so many achievements here. Watford is on the up- but there's more to be done!
I will be releasing my plan for Watford in the coming weeks, so watch this space!"