02 June, 2017
The prime minister's speech came just a week before the general election on 8 June.
The chances of leftist veteran Corbyn taking the helm of state seemed pretty slim in April, when May made a decision to call an out-of-cycle "snap" election. The latest YouGov poll suggests 69% of 18-24 year-olds would vote Labour and 19% Conservative.
A separate Panelbase poll - conducted more than a week ago - showed May's lead grew to 15 points, but the company warned on Wednesday that this reflected a new methodology, and that a newer poll due this week would probably show a smaller lead for May.
Data collected by YouGov suggested that the Tories could lose up to 20 of the 330 seats they held in the last parliament, and Labour could gain nearly 30 seats.
Britain's Prime Minister and Conservative party leader Theresa May delivers a speech at Ultima Furniture, while on the General Election campaign trail, in Pontefract, West Yorkshire, England, Thursday June 1, 2017. This drastic shift has appeared to inject new life into an election that was previously viewed as a potential landslide victory for the Conservatives.
But Brexit Secretary David Davis acknowledged that the Tories can not promise to hit the target, which has been missed over the past seven years since first being formulated by David Cameron.
That could leave the Tories 16 seats short of the overall majority of 326 needed to govern without the support of other parties.
That would have uncertain consequences for Britain's $2.5 trillion economy, and future government policy on everything from government spending and corporate taxation to bond issuance.
But Mrs May's lead has shrunk from more than 20 percentage points to as little as five, according to opinion polls, though all major polls put Mrs May in the lead.
Tory activist Ian Ferguson said his father-in-law - a lifelong Labour voter - had been ready to switch to May before the social care row.
"Britain deserves to see the only two people who could be the next Prime Minister debate", Corbyn tweeted the morning of the event in a last-minute effort to persuade May to attend.
On the other hand, the Labour Party says that faced with falling living standards, growing job insecurity and shrinking public services, people are under increasing strain.
But Mr Corbyn has benefited from the eclipse of Mrs May's unique selling point - that she alone was tough enough to stand up to the bullies of Brussels.
The PM warned that the City's role as a global financial hub "cannot be done by somebody else at the drop of the hat" and said she would urge European Union states to recognise "the significant role that the City plays in supporting their economies and their businesses". He doesn't believe in Britain.
"I was very anxious because my husband has very bad health", she told AFP, adding that she had welcomed confirmation that costs would be capped. "Jeremy Corbyn is not", said May.
The polling averages were taken after live leaders' debate yesterday which was snubbed by Theresa May, who sent Home Secretary Amber Rudd instead.
The most recent survey, conducted by YouGov/The Times, finds the Tories ahead of Labour by a mere three points.
