Boris Johnson Resigns: Timetable For Appointment Of New UK Prime Minister To Be Unveiled Next Week, As UK PM Says: “In Politics, No One Is Indispensable”

Max Goldbart
·2 min read
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

A timetable for Boris Johnson’s replacement will be announced next week, as the embattled UK Prime Minister on Thursday delivered his resignation speech outside 10 Downing Street, stating: “In politics, no one is indispensable.”

Johnson’s speech was a far cry from Theresa May’s tearful departure three years ago, and the PM, who suffered more than 50 cabinet resignations in the past 36 hours before finally leaving, looked determined.

More from Deadline

Boris Johnson’s Departure: Media In Overdrive, TV Schedules Ripped Up & Questions Over Future Of BBC & Channel 4 — Analysis

He said he had spoken to Graham Brady, who runs the influential Conservative 1922 Committee, and will now appoint an interim cabinet to serve until a new leader is in place. Some members of that cabinet have been unveiled in the past hour and a timetable for Johnson’s replacement will be announced next week. Johnson’s team initially floated October as the time when a new PM will be appointed, although his resignation statement didn’t mention a date.

“I have tried to persuade colleagues that it would be eccentric to change governments when we are delivering so much,” he said. “I regret not being able to do so but the herd instinct in Westminster is powerful. In politics, no one is indispensable.”

He described the British political system as “brilliant and Darwinian” and said it will “produce another equally committed to taking [our agenda] forward.”

UK PM Boris Johnson Sacks Close Confidant Michael Gove Amid More Than 40 Resignations (And Counting)

Those already predicted to run include Rishi Sunak and Sajid Javid, whose resignations Tuesday sparked Johnson’s downfall; Deputy PM Dominic Raab; Foreign Secretary Liz Truss; and Defence Secretary Ben Wallace. Wildcards Suella Braverman and Steve Baker have already said they will run live on air.

Johnson listed off what he considers to be his greatest achievements since becoming PM with a huge mandate, including “standing up to Putin’s aggression in Ukraine” and “delivering the fastest vaccine rollout in Europe,” and he thanked wife Carrie Johnson, the NHS, civil service and British public.

He concluded: “Even if things seem dark now, our future together is golden.”

Best of Deadline

Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Click here to read the full article.