London 18 Apr (ANA)  - UK Prime Minister Theresa May has announced plans to call a snap general election on 8 June. She said Britain needed certainty, stability and strong leadership following the EU referendum. Explaining the decision, Mrs May said: "The country is coming together but Westminster is not." There will be a Commons vote on the proposed election on Wednesday - she will need Parliament's backing to hold a vote before 2020. Explaining her change of heart on an early election, Mrs May said: "I have concluded the only way to guarantee certainty and security for years ahead is to hold this election." Mrs May accused the other political parties of "game playing", adding that this risks "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. We have at this moment a one off chance to get this done." This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version. If you want to receive Breaking News alerts via email, or on a smartphone or tablet via the BBC News App then details on how to do so are available on this help page. You can also follow @BBCBreaking on Twitter to get the latest alerts.(ANA)

FA/ANA/18 April 2017------