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Rishi Sunak’s decision to call a general election on July 4 has set in train a series of political and constitutional events unforeseen 48 hours ago.
里希•苏纳克(Rishi Sunak)决定在7月4日举行大选，这引发了一系列48小时前未能预料的政治和宪法事件。
With an election now six weeks away, these are the some of the key moments in Britain’s new political calendar.
现在距离大选还有6周的时间，以下是英国新政治日历上的一些关键时刻。
What does the election mean for parliament?
这次选举对议会意味着什么？
The prime minister’s decision to hold a July 4 poll has led to a frenetic clearing of the legislative decks before parliament is officially “prorogued” — or suspended — on Friday.
首相决定在7月4日举行大选，导致议会在周五正式“休会”或暂停之前的立法清理工作。
The surprise calling of a summer election has forced Sunak to hurriedly drop key bills including measures to crack down on smoking by young people and create a new football regulator for England.
出人意料的夏季选举迫使苏纳克匆忙放弃了一些重要法案，包括打击年轻人吸烟的措施，以及为英格兰建立一个新的足球监管机构。
Parliament will be officially dissolved on May 30, at which point all seats fall vacant. Some MPs resent the fact that they have had little time to say their farewells to colleagues.
议会将于5月30日正式解散，届时所有席位都将空缺。一些议员对他们几乎没有时间和同事道别的事实感到不满。
After the election, parliament will meet on July 9, when the first business will be the election of the Speaker of the House of Commons and the swearing-in of new MPs. The State Opening will take place on July 17.
选举结束后，议会将于7月9日开会，届时第一件事将是选举下议院议长和新议员宣誓就职。国会开幕大典(The State Opening)将于7月17日举行。
When will the manifestos appear?
宣言何时发表？
Labour says its manifesto, or programme for government, is ready but it has yet to set a publication date. According to party insiders it will be “a reasonably slim document”. Sunak claims Sir Keir Starmer, leader of the main opposition party, has “no plan” for the country.
工党表示，其宣言或政府计划已经准备就绪，但尚未确定发布日期。据党内人士透露，这将是一份“相当薄的文件”。苏纳克声称，主要反对党领袖基尔•斯塔默爵士(Sir Keir Starmer)对国家“没有计划”。
The Labour manifesto has been pulled together by Rav Athwal, a former academic and Treasury official, but under tight political control from Pat McFadden, the party’s campaign co-ordinator, and campaign chief Morgan McSweeney.
工党宣言由前学术界和财政部官员拉夫•阿斯瓦尔(Rav Athwal)起草，但受到该党竞选协调人帕特•麦克法登(Pat McFadden)和竞选负责人摩根•麦克斯威尼(Morgan McSweeney)的严格政治控制。
Party insiders say McFadden and McSweeney have “bomb-proofed” the manifesto to avoid it exploding in the course of a six-week campaign. Expect a focus on “stability” with promises to reform worker rights, planning and a pledge to invest in the green transition.
党内人士称，麦克法登和麦克斯威尼已经对宣言进行了“防爆”处理，以避免它在为期6周的竞选过程中引爆。预计他将把重点放在“稳定”上，承诺改革工人权利、规划并承诺投资绿色转型。
Allies of Sunak say the Conservative manifesto is “in good shape” and is intended to show the party has not run out of ideas. “It’s not going to be bland,” said one. The party says it expects to publish the document early in the campaign.
苏纳克的盟友表示，保守党的宣言“状态良好”，意在表明该党还没有穷尽想法。其中一人表示：“宣言不会是平淡无奇的。”该党表示，预计将在竞选初期公布这份文件。
Will Tanner and James Nation, two policy advisers, “held the pen” on the document. Expect red-blooded commitments on tax cuts, migration, welfare reform and extra defence spending.
两位政策顾问威尔•坦纳(Will Tanner)和詹姆斯•纳恩(James Nation)“执笔”这份文件。预计他们将在减税、移民、福利改革和增加国防开支等问题上做出令人振奋的承诺。
Will there be TV debates?
会有电视辩论吗？
Although they feel like a long-standing tradition in British politics, TV debates between party leaders started only in 2010, a remarkable 50 years after Richard Nixon and John F Kennedy went head to head in the US presidential race in 1960.
虽然电视辩论在英国政坛似乎是一个历史悠久的传统，但政党领袖之间的电视辩论直到2010年才开始，这距离1960年理查德•尼克松(Richard Nixon)和约翰•F•肯尼迪(John F Kennedy)在美国总统竞选中正面交锋已有50年之久。
Typically the underdog in an election has more to gain from such an encounter, so Sunak’s team have challenged Starmer to take part in a televised debate during every week of the six-week campaign.
通常，在选举中处于劣势的一方会从这样的交锋中获益更多，因此，苏纳克的团队向斯塔默发起挑战，要求他在为期6周的竞选活动中，每周都参加一场电视辩论。
“Don’t you think the British public deserve to know what you actually stand for?” asked Richard Holden, Tory chair, on social media platform X. It is highly unlikely Starmer will agree to such an intense schedule.
保守党主席理查德•霍尔顿(Richard Holden)在社交媒体平台X上问道：“难道你不认为英国公众应该知道你到底代表什么吗？”斯塔默极不可能同意如此紧张的日程安排。
“I’ve been saying bring it on for a very, very long time,” Starmer said in January. “I’m happy to debate any time.”
斯塔默在今年1月表示：“我已经说了很久很久了，开始吧，我很乐意随时进行辩论。”
There has been speculation that the Labour leader might only take part in two debates on the BBC and ITV. A spokesperson for Starmer declined to comment, but insisted: “We’re up for it.”
有人猜测工党领袖可能只参加BBC和ITV的两场辩论。斯塔默的发言人拒绝置评，但坚称：“我们准备好了。”
How will candidates be picked?
如何挑选候选人？
A frantic rush by all the parties to select their final candidates will now take place before the June 7 deadline to submit nomination forms to the Electoral Commission, the elections watchdog.
在6月7日向选举监督机构选举委员会(Electoral Commission)提交提名表格的最后期限之前，所有政党都将疯狂地快速选出他们的最终候选人。
Both the Conservatives and Labour have scores of vacancies left to fill, with additional openings arising on Thursday after a new clutch of MPs announced they would be stepping down at this election.
在一批新议员宣布他们将在这次选举中辞职后，保守党和工党都有几十个职位空缺需要填补，周四还会出现更多的职位空缺。
The latest departures include Tory MPs Dame Eleanor Laing, deputy Commons speaker, plus ministers Jo Churchill and Huw Merriman. Labour MPs Holly Lynch and Kevan Jones have also now said they will leave parliament.
最新离职的包括保守党议员、下议院副议长埃莉诺•莱恩爵士(Dame Eleanor Laing)，以及部长乔•丘吉尔(Jo Churchill)和休•梅里曼(Huw Merriman)。工党议员霍利•林奇(Holly Lynch)和凯万•琼斯(Kevan Jones)也表示将离开议会。
The heaviest scrutiny will fall on empty Labour and Tory “safe” seats, into which party bosses are likely to try and parachute favoured figures. The central party machines enjoy far greater influence in these eleventh-hour selections.
最严格的审查将落在工党和保守党空缺的“安全”席位上，党魁们可能会试图把自己看好的人空降到这些席位上。中央政党机器在这些最后时刻的选择中享有更大的影响力。
Will international meetings be affected?
国际会议是否会受到影响？
Sunak’s decision to go for July 4 throws up some significant political and diplomatic challenges. Downing Street’s working assumption is that he will still attend the G7 summit in Bari, Italy, between June 13 and June 15.
苏纳克决定在7月4日举行大选，这带来了一些重大的政治和外交挑战。英国政府目前的假设是，苏纳克仍将出席6月13日至15日在意大利巴里举行的七国集团(G7)峰会。
More interesting is the fact that whoever emerges as prime minister on July 4 — opinion polls suggest it will be Starmer — will be thrust immediately on to the world stage with two big upcoming international summits.
更有趣的是，无论谁在7月4日当选首相——民意调查显示将是斯塔默——都将立即被推到世界舞台上，参加即将举行的两场大型国际峰会。
The newly elected UK leader will travel to a Nato meeting in Washington starting on July 9, where the Ukraine war will be high on the security alliance’s agenda.
新当选的英国领导人将于7月9日前往华盛顿参加北约(NATO)会议，乌克兰战争将是该安全联盟的重要议程。
Then crucially on July 18, the new premier is scheduled to host a meeting of the European Political Community at Blenheim Palace. London’s sluggishness over fixing this date for the grouping of more than 40 European states had already riled allies.
至关重要的是，7月18日，这位新首相将在布莱尼姆宫(Blenheim Palace)主持欧洲政治共同体(European Political Community)会议。伦敦方面对于确定这个由40多个欧洲国家组成集团的会议日期的迟缓，已经激怒了盟友。
A change of prime minister would further complicate matters. Sunak intended the event to focus on irregular migration, while Starmer is likely to favour a broader agenda.
更换首相将使问题进一步复杂化。苏纳克希望这次会议能集中讨论非正常移民问题，而斯塔默则可能倾向于更广泛的议程。