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| Jeremy Corbyn, Reversing Course, to Take Part in U.K. Election Debate | Jeremy Corbyn, Reversing Course, to Take Part in U.K. Election Debate |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| LONDON — In a surprising reversal, Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of Britain’s Labour Party, said he would take part in a debate Wednesday night, eight days before a general election. | LONDON — In a surprising reversal, Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of Britain’s Labour Party, said he would take part in a debate Wednesday night, eight days before a general election. |
| Mr. Corbyn, who had refused to participate in the televised debate in Cambridge with officials from seven parties because Prime Minister Theresa May had declined to do so, made the announcement on Wednesday at a rally in Reading, west of London. | Mr. Corbyn, who had refused to participate in the televised debate in Cambridge with officials from seven parties because Prime Minister Theresa May had declined to do so, made the announcement on Wednesday at a rally in Reading, west of London. |
| “I have to go now,” Mr. Corbyn said, “because I am going to Cambridge to get ready for the debate, because there is no hiding place.” | “I have to go now,” Mr. Corbyn said, “because I am going to Cambridge to get ready for the debate, because there is no hiding place.” |
| The debate begins at 7:30 p.m. local time. | The debate begins at 7:30 p.m. local time. |
| The Labour Party had been expected to fare poorly in the general elections on June 8, but it has gained ground in recent polls, putting pressure on Mrs. May and her Conservative Party. | |
| Mr. Corbyn’s change of heart comes after a solid performance in an earlier televised appearance this week, in which he and Mrs. May were questioned separately by voters and journalists. | Mr. Corbyn’s change of heart comes after a solid performance in an earlier televised appearance this week, in which he and Mrs. May were questioned separately by voters and journalists. |
| “Refusing to join me in Cambridge tonight would be another sign of Theresa May’s weakness, not strength,” Mr. Corbyn said in a statement. | “Refusing to join me in Cambridge tonight would be another sign of Theresa May’s weakness, not strength,” Mr. Corbyn said in a statement. |
| Home Secretary Amber Rudd was expected to represent the Conservatives at the debate, and Mrs. May gave no indication while speaking to factory workers in Bath that she would follow Mr. Corbyn’s lead with an 11th-hour reversal. | |
| “I’m interested, you know, in the fact that Jeremy Corbyn seems to be paying far more attention to how many appearances on telly he’s doing, and he ought to be paying a little more attention to thinking about Brexit negotiations,” the BBC quoted her as saying. | |
| “I’ve been taking Jeremy Corbyn on directly a week in, a week out in Prime Minister’s Questions,” she continued, referring to a weekly parliamentary ritual in which the British leader takes questions from lawmakers. | |
| Mr. Corbyn and Ms. Rudd are expected to be joined by representatives of five other parties: Tim Farron of the Liberal Democrats, Angus Robertson of the Scottish National Party, Paul Nuttall of the U.K. Independence Party, Caroline Lucas of the Green Party and Leanne Wood of the Welsh nationalist party, Plaid Cymru. | Mr. Corbyn and Ms. Rudd are expected to be joined by representatives of five other parties: Tim Farron of the Liberal Democrats, Angus Robertson of the Scottish National Party, Paul Nuttall of the U.K. Independence Party, Caroline Lucas of the Green Party and Leanne Wood of the Welsh nationalist party, Plaid Cymru. |