At the time of the vote of confidence in the Prime Minister on 6th June 2022, I was regrettably unable to give the Prime Minister my support. I said then that the country has reason to be grateful to Boris Johnson for getting Brexit done after a period of uncertainty and for securing a successful vaccine programme in the face of the pandemic. This remains the case, and there are many further achievements for which the Prime Minister can be proud, including his response to the invasion of Ukraine and the leadership he has shown internationally.
At the time of the vote I concluded that it was time for a different kind of leadership and a new team. Regrettably, the revelations concerning the conduct of the former Deputy Chief Whip and the failure of No 10 to be transparent on this issue precipitated further concerns. Events over recent days have moved quickly and it became clear that the Prime Minister had also lost the confidence both of his Ministers and the wider Parliamentary Conservative party.
As a consequence, the Prime Minister has this afternoon resigned as leader of the Conservative Party and will remain as Prime Minister until such a time as a new leader can be appointed. It is my hope that this process will be conducted swiftly, so that we may continue to address the challenges we face as a country and deliver on the mandate secured by the Conservative Party in the 2019 General Election.
