Sunak blindsided his own chancellor with early U.K. election call

U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s decision to stake the Conservative Party’s future on a rare summer election was so secret that even his chancellor of the exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, appeared surprised by the plan.

Hunt’s allies were unaware enough of the snap election Sunak called on Wednesday that some feared a rumored big announcement meant that the chancellor was about to be replaced in a reshuffle, according to people familiar with thinking in the Treasury.

As the prime minister prepared to reveal his decision in a news conference outside 10 Downing St., Hunt was busy canceling media appearances to speak about the morning’s inflation data and shortening a trip to a meeting of Group of Seven finance ministers on Thursday in Italy.