British Prime Minister Mr Tony Blair is to cut short the Bank Holiday weekend to rally his ministers for the General Election, it emerged tonight.
The Prime Minister will hold a cabinet meeting on Monday in which he will tell ministers the election must be fought "as if it is on a knife-edge".
He is then expected to go to the country on Tuesday and announce that polling day will be Thursday June 7.
With Labour's huge lead in the polls in mind, Mr Blair will warn his ministers against complacency.
The 1997 election was won because people wanted the Tories out, he will say, but this one must be fought "on our own terms".
"We must fight against the sense that this election is going to be a foregone conclusion," the Prime Minister will tell ministers.
Mr Blair, who will spend his 48th birthday at Chequers tomorrow fine-tuning the election strategy, is then expected to go to Buckingham Palace for an audience with the Queen before calling an election on Tuesday.
He will then make a keynote speech in London in which he will set out the main themes of Labour's campaign.
The campaign is to focus on crime, taxes, health, education and crime, as well as saving schemes for poor families and babies.
A campaigning secret weapon will be a magazine version of Labour's election manifesto, which will be sent to one million households in the run-up to polling day.
Labour hopes the magazine will present the party's campaigning issues in a more accessible way.
The party will also launch its pledge card which will outline manifesto promises on employment, crime and child poverty.
PA