UK Budget date kickstarts huge election year

THE week between Christmas and New Year is traditionally a time for UK politics to take a holiday. However, Dec 27 saw UK Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt fire the starting guns on the 2024 general election campaign, announcing a Mar 6 date for his annual budget.

This announcement will fuel speculation that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak could call the election in the first half of 2024. However, whenever the timing is, the most likely scenario is a significant change in UK politics which will have key international implications, not only domestic ones.

To be sure, there may be some significant continuity in UK foreign policy to begin with. This includes issues such as strong UK support for Ukraine in its fight against Russia.