Jeremy Corbyn was cheered by members of his top team, as he made his announcement at Labour’s campaign headquarters in central London.
He said: “I have consistently said that we are ready for an election and our support is subject to a no-deal Brexit being off the table.
“We have now heard from the EU that the extension of Article 50 to 31 January has been confirmed, so for the next three months, our condition of taking no-deal off the table has now been met.
“We will now launch the most ambitious and radical campaign for real change our country has ever seen.”
Mr Burgon said Labour would be pushing to get votes for 16 and 17 year olds, as well as EU nationals so they can have their say.
Labour MP Stella Creasy said the government was seeking to “rig the debate”.
But he added: “Even if we don’t get those things we want, when push comes to shove, we are going to support an election.”
Not all Labour MPs are on board, with Ben Bradshaw saying it was a “bad mistake” and calling instead for another referendum on Brexit.
His fellow backbench MP, Barry Sheerman, tweeted that it was “sheer madness” to hold a December election “on Boris Johnson’s agenda”.
