British PM May calls it a day

Theresa May

London: An emotional British Prime Minister Theresa May on Friday announced that she would resign as the Conservative leader on June 7 "in the best interests of the country" after she failed to win support from party lawmakers for her strategy for the UK's divorce from the European Union.

The embattled prime minister said she would step down as leader of the Conservative Party on June 7, with a leadership contest for a new Prime Minister to kick off the following week starting June 10. She would meanwhile stay on caretaker PM until a new incumbent has been elected by the Tories.

"I will shortly leave the job that it has been the honour of my life to hold," she said. "The second female Prime Minister, but certainly not the last. I do so with no ill will, but with enormous and enduring gratitude to have had the opportunity to serve the country I love," the 62-year-old May said in an emotional speech outside 10 Downing Street.

The outgoing Prime Minister said she had kept Queen Elizabeth II informed of her exit timetable, meaning she would be presiding over US President Donald Trump's state visit to the UK from June 3.

Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the opposition Labour Party, said May was right to call it a day. "She's now accepted what the country's known for months: she can't govern, and nor can her divided and disintegrating party," he adds, calling for her replacement to order a snap election.

In her speech, May listed a series of what she said were her government's achievements, including tackling the deficit, reducing unemployment and boosting funding for mental health. She called her failure to deliver Brexit a matter of "deep regret ."

June 03
Day US President Trump is scheduled to visit the UK

Catch up on all the latest Crime, National, International and Hatke news here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates