The UK is likely to hold a general election December 12 as lawmakers continue to work to settle on a Brexit plan.
NPR reports that the House of Commons voted in favor of a snap election for December 12 on Tuesday after the opposition Labour Party agreed to the plan. The House of Lords is expected to approve the bill.
The move follows the latest extension of the Brexit deadline, which had been set for October 31, to January 31, 2020. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson had requested the extension in order to comply with a recently passed law and following the defeat of his latest Brexit deal in Parliament. After the European Union (EU) granted the extension request, Johnson called for a new general election, winning the backing of two other opposition parties, the Liberal Democrats and the Scottish National Party.
In terms of travel impact, the news of a new general election has not put a damper on the value of the pound, according to an analysis in Pound Sterling Forecast. A weak pound makes vacations to the UK relatively cheaper and outbound travel from the UK more expensive, while a strong pound has the opposite effect. At the same time, the coming election campaign could have a negative impact on the currency’s value, according to the report.
Uncertainty will also continue to surround the outcome of Brexit. This uncertainty was one of the factors blamed for the recent collapse of iconic UK travel brand Thomas Cook. That company filed for insolvency, stranding hundreds of thousands of travelers and prompting the UK’s largest repatriation effort since World War II. Following Thomas Cook's collapse, all of the company’s UK storefronts were acquired by independent UK travel agency Hays Travel.
In terms of air travel, both the United States and the European Union have deals in place to allow flights to and from the UK to continue, even in the event of a no-deal Brexit.
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