Manchester terror attack: Conservatives, Labour to resume campaigning for 8 June polls on Friday

London: Britain’s political parties would resume local-level campaigning on Friday for the 8 June snap polls following a nationwide minute’s silence, days after suspending efforts due to the Manchester terror attack in which 22 people were killed and over 100 injured. The ruling Conservatives and Opposition Labour will resume national-level campaigning on Friday, officials said. The United Kingdom will hold the nationwide minute’s silence at 15.30 IST on Thursday in memory of the victims of Monday night’s terror attack, officials said in a statement, adding that flags would remain at half-mast until Thursday evening. A 22-year-old Libyan-origin suicide bomber, Salman Abedi, set off a powerful homemade bomb at a concert of US pop star Ariana Grande in Manchester, killing at least 22 people and injuring 119 others, in the deadliest terror attack in Britain since the 2005 London bombings. The ruling Conservatives, Opposition Labour, Liberal Democrats, Green Party and the Scottish National Party said they would resume local-level campaigning tomorrow after a United Kingdom-wide minute’s silence at 11 am (local time). [caption id=“attachment_3478787” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of the Manchester Arena attack. Reuters[/caption] “The Conservative Party will resume local campaigning for the general election at noon Thursday, after the minute’s silence to remember all those who lost their lives and others who were affected by the callous attack on innocent life in Manchester. National campaigning will resume on Friday,” a party spokesperson said. Opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn also confirmed the party will resume the campaign from Friday, adding: “The British people are united in their resolve that terror will not prevail. It will not prevent us going about our daily lives or derail our democratic process. “Resuming democratic debate and campaigning is an essential mark of the country’s determination to defend our democracy and the unity that the terrorists have sought to attack”. The Liberal Democrats said: “Like other parties we have agreed that local campaigning may resume with due sensitivity and at the discretion of local campaign managers”. The far-right, anti-Europe UK Independence Party (UKIP) plans to launch its party’s election manifesto on Thursday. “These people hate the way we live, hate our freedom and hate our democracy. The best response we can make is to ensure that the democratic process continues and therefore I have decided that we must to go ahead with the launch of the UKIP general election manifesto tomorrow,” said party leader Paul Nuttal. Prime Minister Theresa May last month called for snap elections on 8 June in a surprise move that stunned her allies as well as opponents, asserting that it is the only way to guarantee political stability in the country for years after the UK leaves the European Union.