Cameron in call for June election

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Mr Cameron insisted he was not complacent about victory in the upcoming election, despite opinion polls over the weekend which put the Conservatives as many as 19 points clear of Labour.

But the Tory leader said the country urgently needed a new government able to "wipe the slate clean" and take long-term decisions on the economy, tax and spending and said he was "absolutely ready" for an election whenever it comes.

Mr Cameron was speaking on the inaugural broadcast of The Sun's new SunTalk internet radio service, where presenter Jon Gaunt repeatedly addressed him as "Prime Minister" in the expectation that he will enter 10 Downing Street soon.

Asked by Gaunt whether he stood in front of the mirror every morning wondering what it will be like to be PM, Mr Cameron responded: "None of that complacency... If you've got a couple of kids pulling you out of bed saying 'Get me dressed' and 'Where's my Weetabix?', you don't have much time for that sort of thing."

Mr Cameron said it was time for Mr Brown to "get on with it" and call an election: "I am ready. I have been utterly consistent in the last three-and-a-half years, whether I am 10 points ahead in the polls or 10 points behind in the polls I have always said 'Bring it on, let's have the election'.

"I want to give people in this country the chance to vote for change, so I am absolutely ready for it, whenever he wants to have that election - just name the day. We are all going to the polls on June 4 for the European elections. Why don't we double up?"

Mr Cameron said his call for an election was not merely intended to allow the Conservatives to capitalise on strong showings in the opinion polls.

"There is a really serious reason for it," he said. "As a nation we have got to take some really difficult decisions over the coming months about taxation and spending and the budget and we need a Government that is acting for the long term. We need a Government that can wipe the slate clean.

"Whether it is this stuff about smears or whatever, you can see that they are thinking about the short term all the time. We need a Government that has a five to 10-year horizon, not a five-minute horizon."