Theresa May resigns: Boris Johnson threatens no-deal Brexit as prominent Conservatives announce bids to replace PM
MPs pay tribute to ‘dignified’ prime minister as leadership race intensifies
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Your support makes all the difference.Theresa May announced her resignation in an emotional speech on Friday, in which she said she would stand down as Conservative party leader on 7 June.
Ms May said she had “done my best” in a speech from Downing Street, before the Tory party announced a new prime minister would be in No.10 by 31 July.
Watched by husband Philip, Ms May’s voice cracked as she said it had been “the honour of my life” to serve as PM and she felt “enormous and enduring gratitude to have had the opportunity to serve the country I love”.
In an apparent warning to the Conservative Party not to pursue a no-deal Brexit after she goes, Ms May said her successor will need to pursue compromise to find a way of delivering the result of the 2016 referendum and taking the UK out of the EU in a way that protects jobs, security and the Union.
But Tory leadership contenders are now ramping up their efforts to replace her, ahead of the official start of the contest.
Boris Johnson emerged as the bookmakers’ favourite to succeed Ms May, as Jeremy Hunt and Sir Graham Brady announced they would stand.
Mr Johnson said the prime minister had been “patient and stoical” in her failed attempt to solve the Brexit crisis.
“The job of our next leader in the UK, he or she, is to get out of the EU properly and put Brexit to bed,” Mr Johnson said.
“We will leave the EU on 31 October, deal or no deal,” the former foreign secretary said, adding a second referendum on EU membership would be a “very bad idea”.
Conservative MPs also paid tribute to the dignified manner in which Theresa May announced her departure.
“Delivering Brexit was always going to be a huge task,” said Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt.
“But one she met every day with courage and resolve...a true public servant.”
Additional reporting by agencies
If you would like to see how the day’s news from Westminster unfolded, please see what was our live coverage below:
Having urged her to step aside, more leading Conservatives have paid tribute to the outgoing PM Theresa May.
Dominic Raab, the former Brexit Secretary and a candidate to replace May as leader, tweeted: “Dignified as ever, Theresa May showed her integrity. She remains a dedicated public servant, patriot and loyal Conservative.”
Michael Gove, environment secretary, tweeted: “A moving speech from a Prime Minister who deserves our respect and gratitude. Thank you Theresa May.”
Steve Baker, prominent ERG member Steve Baker, tweeted: “Very dignified statement from Theresa May, beginning to set out the many things which she has achieved in office. This is a sad but necessary day.”
Boris Johnson reacts to Theresa May’s resignation, paying tribute to her “stoical service”.
Just a reminder that Theresa May won’t actually be leaving 10 Downing Street until the end of Conservative party leadership contest. Here’s what she had to say about the process.
“Today announcing that I will resign as the leader of the Conservative and Unionist Party on Friday 7 June so that a successor can be chosen.
“I have agreed with the party chairman and with the chairman of the 1922 committee that the process for electing a new leader should begin in the following week.
“I have kept Her Majesty the Queen fully informed of my intentions and I will continue to serve as her Prime Minister until the process has concluded.”
Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon has called Boris Johnson a “hyprocrite” for paying tribute to the outgoing PM.
Earlier Sturgeon paid her own tribute, stating: “I wish Theresa May well. She and I had profound disagreements - not least on her handling of Brexit and her disregard for Scotland's interests. However, leadership is tough - especially in these times - and she deserves thanks for her service.
“Her departure will not solve the Brexit mess that the Tories have created. Only putting the matter back to the people can do that. Given current circumstances, it also feels deeply wrong for another Tory to be installed in Number 10 without a General Election.”
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has responded to Theresa May’s resignation by calling for an “immediate” general election.
“She has now accepted what the country has known for months: she cannot govern, and nor can her divided and disintegrating party.
“The burning injustices she promised to tackle three years ago are even starker today. The Conservative Party has utterly failed the country over Brexit and is unable to improve people's lives or deal with their most pressing needs.
“Parliament is deadlocked and the Conservatives offer no solutions to the other major challenges facing our country.”
“The last thing the country needs is weeks of more Conservative infighting followed by yet another unelected Prime Minister. Whoever becomes the new Conservative Leader must let the people decide our country's future, through an immediate General Election.”
Business chiefs don’t sound happy about the imminent change of PM, as they repeated calls for an end to the uncertainty over Brexit.
Dr Adam Marshall, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, said: “Businesses must be reassured that a change at the top in Downing Street does not simply usher in a longer period of posturing and gesture politics. Westminster has already squandered far too much time going around in circles on Brexit.”
Jasmine Whitbread, chief executive of London First said: “After more than a thousand wasted days of Brexit chaos, the six-month extension the UK was granted to find a way out of this mess risks being squandered unless the Conservative Party gets its act together and fast … We cannot and must not risk crashing out of the EU in October.”
David Frost, chief executive of London Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said: “We hope that a new leader can find a constructive way forward to break the impasse in Parliament and deliver certainty about the UK’s terms of exit from the EU. Exit on WTO terms is still a very real possibility on October 31 and whether or not it happens is not entirely in UK hands.”
CBI director general Carolyn Fairbairn said: “Nation must be put ahead of party, prosperity ahead of politics. Compromise and consensus must re-find their voice in Parliament. We call on politicians from all parties, on all those ambitious to lead, to take this chance for a fresh start.”
French President Emmanuel Macron stands ready to work with a new PM minister, but wants “rapid clarification” from the UK on Brexit, a senior official has told Reuters.
“Our relations with the United Kingdom are critical in all areas. It is too early to speculate on the consequences of [May’s] decision,” the Macron aide said, adding it was essential that the EU’s smooth functioning was not affected.
“We need rapid clarification” from Britain on what it wants with Brexit, the official added. The UK is still set to leave the EU without a deal at the end of October.
We now have Nigel Farage’s response to Theresa May’s resignation.
The Brexit Party leader tweeted: “It is difficult not to feel for Ms May, but politically she misjudged the mood of the country and her party. Two Tory leaders have now gone whose instincts were pro-EU. Either the party learns that lesson or it dies.”
Here’s our political sketch writer Tom Peck with his take on Theresa May’s resignation and her “remarkable cameo” in the highest office in the land.
DUP Leader Arlene Foster says she enjoyed a “respectful” relationship with Theresa May. “After the General Election in June 2017, we worked with the Prime Minister and her team through the Confidence and Supply Agreement.
“Whilst at times there were differences in our approach, particularly on Brexit, we enjoyed a respectful and courteous relationship.
“In particular, I commend and thank the Prime Minister for her dutiful approach on national issues and her willingness to recognise Northern Ireland’s need for additional resources through Confidence and Supply arrangements.
“I pay tribute to her selfless service in the interests of the United Kingdom and wish her well for the future.”
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