Theresa May to leave Downing Street on June 7 amid Brexit crisis
The UK Prime Minister has announced she will step down from her post after facing pressure from members of her own party, bringing her three-year stewardship of the country to a close.
Theresa May has finally succumb to unrelenting pressure from MPs within her own Conservative party to step down as prime minister, naming June 7 her official departure date.
The move sees May bring an end to her three-year tenure at Downing Street, though she was unable to deliver Brexit during her stint as prime minister, leaving the job to her successor with the Tory leadership race officially underway.
May bids an emotional farewell
In what was an emotional speech outside 10 Downing Street, May said that she had ‘done everything’ in her power to reach a compromise with MPs from within her own party and those across the aisle to secure an orderly exit from the EU.
‘It is and will always remain a matter of deep regret to me that I have not been able to deliver Brexit,’ she added.
But despite failing to deliver Brexit, May said that her time as Britain’s second female prime minister was an honour and she said she would leave ‘with no ill will, but with enormous and enduring gratitude to have had the opportunity to serve the country I love’.
Boris Johnson bookmakers’ favourite to succeed May
Now that May has announced her departure date from 10 Downing Street, bookmakers' have already placed their bets on Boris Johnson filling her shoes.
Johnson was a prominent figure for the leave campaign in the build up to the Brexit referendum back in June 2016.
In a recent report, US-based investment bank JP Morgan raised its probability of the UK leaving the EU without a deal from 15% to 25% this week.
The bank also believes Johnson will be appointed prime minister, closely followed by a general election and a further delay to Brexit beyond the October 31 deadline.
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