Boris Johnson resigns as British PM amid huge political storm
LONDON, July 7, 2022
Boris Johnson said on Thursday he was resigning as Britain's prime minister, bowing to calls from ministerial colleagues and lawmakers in his Conservative Party.
His resignation follows a huge revolt from his conservative party, during which more than 50 lawmakers resigned in a 36-hour period starting on Tuesday night, reported Reuters.
"The process of choosing that new leader should begin now," Johnson said at the door of Number 10 Downing Street.
"And today I have appointed a cabinet to serve, as I will, until a new leader is in place."
Johnson, the UK’s prime minister since 2019 and the spearhead of the 2016 Brexit campaign, was forced to step down once his colleagues said they could no longer continue to serve under Johnson, and most called for him to step down.
More than 50 lawmakers resigned in a 36-hour period starting on Tuesday night, when Rishi Sunak, the chancellor of the exchequer, and Sajid Javid, the health secretary, quit the government.
“In the past few weeks, I have been trying to convince my colleagues it would be eccentric to change governments when we have achieved so much,” he said in his speech outside No. 10 Downing St. amid loud booing from the crowd nearby. “I regret not to be successful in those arguments and, of course, it’s painful not to be able to see through those projects myself.”
Johnson also said he planned to remain as prime minister until a successor is chosen — a move that may face opposition from others in an increasingly hostile Parliament.
The embattled prime minister had few allies left in the final hours before his announcement, with even ministers he had appointed 36 hours ago turning against him.
He becomes the third consecutive British prime minister to resign before their term in recent years, following in the footsteps of Theresa May and David Cameron.
In his speech, he hailed his government's achievements, including supporting Ukraine after the Russian invasion and weathering the Covid pandemic.
Russian officials lined up to celebrate the downfall of Boris Johnson on Thursday, with a leading tycoon casting the British leader as a "stupid clown" who had finally got his just reward for arming Ukraine against Russia, reported Reuters.
The Kremlin said it too was no fan of the British leader, whose parents named him Boris after a White Russian emigre.
