The UK’s Theresa May announced to step down as a prime minister and leader of the Conservative party. “It is now clear to me that it is in the best interests of the country for a new prime minister to lead that effort. So I am today announcing that I will resign as leader of the Conservative and Unionist Party on Friday the 7th of June,” May said. The step represents an opportunity to give a new leader a chance to find a compromise over Britain’s exit from the European Union.
“I do so with no ill will but with enormous and enduring gratitude to have had the opportunity to serve the country I love,” continued May. While she has not supported a Brexit plan prior to her leadership, May was committed to delivering the decision made in the referendum from 2016 to leave the EU after she won the premiership position. Yet, after constant and continuous disputes over how, when or whether to exit the EU, the prime minister has been under intense pressure to leave the office from opposing parties as well as her own.
“It is and will always remain a matter of deep regret to me that I have not been able to deliver Brexit,” May said with breaking voice. A new leader is likely to desire more decisive split which may further deepen the Brexit crisis, increasing the chances of a no-deal departure from the European Union and a snap parliamentary election. In the meantime, James Cleverly has become the latest MP to join the race – alongside Boris Johnson, Kit Malthouse, Michael Gove, Dominic Raab, Matt Hancock, Jeremy Hunt, Esther McVey, Andrea Leadsom, Rory Stewart and Sajid Javid.
