Boris Johnson has resigned as Conservative leader today. The 58-year-old, who has led the Tory government since 2019, will continue as Prime Minister until the autumn. A Conservative leadership race will take place this summer and a new Prime Minister will be in place in time for the Tory party conference in October. Speaking in front of No 10 Downing Street moments ago, Boris Johnson gave his full resignation speech to the public, saying:
Here's Boris Johnson's resignation speech in full
'It is clearly now the will of the parliamentary Conservative Party that there should be a new leader of the party and therefore a new prime minister. I agree with Sir Graham Brady, the chairman of our backbench MPs, that the process of choosing that new leader should begin now and the timetable will be announced next week. I today appointed a cabinet to serve, as I will, until the new leader is in place. So I want to say to the millions of people who voted for us in 2019, many of them voting conservative for the first time, thank you for that incredible mandate - the biggest conservative majority since 1987, the biggest share of the vote since 1979. And the reason I have fought so hard in the last few days to continue to deliver that mandate in person was not just because I wanted to do so because I felt it was my job, my duty, my obligation to you to continue to do what we promised in 2019.
'And of course, I'm immensely proud of the achievements of this government from getting Brexit done to settling our relations with the continent for over half a century, and reclaiming the power for this country to make its own laws in Parliament, getting us all through the pandemic, delivering the fastest vaccine rollout in Europe, the fastest exit from lockdown, and in the last few months, leading the West in standing up to Putin's aggression in Ukraine.
'And let me say now, to the people of Ukraine, that I know that we in the UK will continue to back your fight for freedom for as long as it takes. And at the same time, in this country, we've been pushing for a vast program of investment in infrastructure and skills and technology and the biggest in a century. Because if I have one insight into human beings, it is the genius and talent and enthusiasm and imagination are evenly distributed throughout the population but opportunity is not. And that's why we must keep levelling up keep unleashing the potential in every part of the United Kingdom. And if we can do that, in this country, we will be the most prosperous in Europe.
'In the last few days, I've tried to persuade my colleagues that it would be eccentric to change governments when we're delivering so much and when we have such a vast mandate, and when we're actually only a handful of points behind in the polls, even in midterm after quite a few months of pretty relentless sledging and when the economic scene is so difficult domestically and internationally, and I regret and not to have been successful in those arguments. Of course, it's painful not to be able to see through so many ideas and projects myself but as we've seen at Westminster, the herd instinct is powerful and when the herd moves, it moves. And my friends in politics, no one is remotely indispensable, and our brilliant and Darwinian system will produce another leader equally committed to taking this country forward through tough times, not just helping families to get through it but changing and improving the way we do things - cutting burdens on businesses and families and yes, cutting taxes, because that is the way to generate the growth and the income, we need to pay for great public services. And to that new leader, I say, wherever he or she made me, I'd say I will give you as much support as I can.
'And to you, the British public. I know that there will be many people who are relieved and perhaps quite a few will also be disappointed. I want you to know how sad I am to be giving up the best job in the world, but them's the breaks. I want to thank Carrie and our children, all members of my family who had to put up with so much for so long. I want to thank the peerless British civil service for all the help and support that you have given our police, our emergency services, and of course, our fantastic NHS who at a critical moment helped to extend my own period in office, as well as our armed services and our agencies that are so admired around the world and our indefatigable Conservative Party members and supporters whose selfless campaigning makes our democracy possible.
'I want to thank the wonderful staff here number 10 and of course at Chequers and our fantastic prop force detectives -the one group by the way, who never leaves. I want to thank you, the British public, for the immense privilege that you have given me. And I want you to know that from now on until the new prime minister is in place, your interests will be served, and the government of the country will be carried on.
'Being Prime Minister is an education in itself. I've travelled to every part of the United Kingdom and in addition to the beauty of our natural world, I find so many people possessed of such boundless British originality and so willing to tackle old problems in new ways that I know that even if things can sometimes seem dark now, our future together is golden. Thank you all very much. Thank you.'
Why did Boris Johnson resign?
Johnson has been fighting for political survival since it was revealed that he appointed Conversative MP Chris Pincher as deputy chief whip, despite being briefed about a sexual misconduct complaint made against him. The Conservative MP for Tamworth resigned from his position on 30 June after allegations of sexual misconduct – having also faced previous allegations about his behaviour – but denies any misconduct.
Following Pincher's resignation, No 10 initially denied that Johnson was aware of any specific complaints against Pincher before appointing him to the top government position. But Lord McDonald - a former top civil servant in the Foreign Office – disputed that claim, stating that Johnson was briefed ‘in person’ about a ‘formal complaint’ into Pincher's conduct in 2019, when Mr Pincher was then Foreign Office minister.
After McDonald’s statement, the government changed tack – stating that the Prime Minister was in fact briefed but could not ‘recall this’ when allegations initially emerged. Johnson has since said that he ‘bitterly regrets’ not acting on the information. He has also denied lying to his team about his awareness of the briefing.
Yesterday, Health Secretary Sajid Javid and Chancellor Rishi Sunak both resigned from the Cabinet within 10 minutes of each other. ‘The public rightly expect government to be conducted properly, competently and seriously,’ Sunak said in his resignation letter. ‘I recognise this may be my last ministerial job, but I believe these standards are worth fighting for and that is why I am resigning.’
For Javid, his resignation letter focused on Johnson losing the public’s confidence. He wrote: ‘I am instinctively a team player but the British people also rightly expect integrity from their Government. The tone you set as a leader, and the values you represent, reflect on your colleagues, your party and ultimately the country.
‘Conservatives at their best are seen as hard-headed decision-makers, guided by strong values. We may not have always been popular, but we have been competent in acting in the national interest. Sadly, in the current circumstances, the public are concluding that we are now neither. The vote of confidence last month showed that a large number of our colleagues agree. It was a moment for humility, grip and new direction.
‘I regret to say, however, that it is clear to me that this situation will not change under your leadership – and you have therefore lost my confidence too.’
A number of other ministers have now also joined the two Tory big-hitters in resigning, including Will Quince, education minister; Alex Chalk, solicitor general; Robin Walker, another education minister; John Glen, Treasury minister, and Victoria Atkins, justice minister. Six parliamentary private secretaries have also resigned, as well as two trade envoys and Bim Afolami, vice-chairman of the Conservative Party for youth.
Who will replace Boris Johnson as Prime Minister?
The PM seemingly had no choice but to follow suit then. Now, we just have to wait and see who takes his spot in leading the country. When a Prime Minister resigns, the parties MPs and members hold a leadership contest to choose a new leader - and therefore the new Prime Minister - without an election. The new leader would have until January 2025 before they had to call a general election.
Reports suggest that former foreign secretary and ex-health secretary Jeremy Hunt is frontrunner currently, with Sunak and Javid both in the running, as well as former defence secretary Penny Mordaunt, Tom Tugendhat (chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee) and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss. Lists of ‘Who could replace Boris Johnson’ also include Defence Secretary Ben Wallace and former education secretary Nadhim Zahawi.