Stephen Timms believes the Prime Minister got off to a bad start by switching her mind.
"I think the election campaign really started quite badly for the Prime Minister because she spent the last nine months telling us there wouldn't be an election.
"Now she's spotted an opportunity for narrow party advantage she's decided to grab it and I don't think that reflects well on her role a s a Prime Minister.
Timms says he plans to shift the focus from Brexit to public services during his campaign.
"We should be focusing on what's happening to public services in the NHS that people are increasingly and rightly worried about.
"We should be focused on what's happening in our schools where there's a new funding formula that's going to take a lot of money away from schools and where the pressures of riding costs and increasing government taxes are making life more and more difficult".
Timms urges Christians to pray for all campaigning as it's a tough time for everyone involved.
"It's always exhausting to fight in an election campaign.
"It's a lot of pressure around and a lot of hard work to be done. All of us who are candidates will be very grateful for support in prayer. "
