borisjohnson has resigned as conservative leader. he has said he will stay on as prime minister until the autumn while a successor is chosen. the announcement came after more senior resignations and declarations of no confidence came from his mps this morning. it is clearly now the will of the parliamentary conservative party that there should be a new leader of that party, and therefore, a new prime minister. this lunchtime, the prime minister

appointed a new cabinet, but sir keir starmer has said he must step down immediately or labour will try to bring a no confidence vote in parliament. he needs to go completely — none of this nonsense about clinging on for a few months. he's inflicted lies, fraud and chaos in the country. we'll have all the latest reaction from here in westminster as well as from our correspondents and voters around the uk. good afternoon, and welcome to the bbc news at one.

borisjohnson has resigned as conservative leader. despite him saying only last night that he would stay in office, more cabinet—level and minister resignations piled on the pressure, and around 9am this morning, the bbc learned that he would step down. but he would not step down as prime minister, he would stay on in office until autumn when a successor is chosen. within the last half—hour, the prime minister made a statement outside downing street. let's hear what he said. in the last few days, i've tried to persuade my colleagues that it would eccentric to change governments when we're delivering so much and when we had such a vast mandate and when we're actually only a handful of points behind in the polls. even in mid—term, after quite a few months of pretty relentless sledging

and when the economic scene is so difficult domestically and internationally. and i regret not to have been successful in those arguments and, of course, it's painful not to be able to see through so many ideas and projects myself. but as we've seen at westminster, the herd instinct is powerful — when the herd moves, it moves, and my friends in politics, no one is remotely indispensable. our brilliant and darwinian system will produce another leader equally committed to taking this country forward through tough times — notjust helping families to get through it but changing and improving the way we do things. cutting burdens on businesses and families and, yes, cutting taxes, because that is the way to generate the growth and the income we need to pay for great public services. and to that new leader, i say, whoever he or she may be,

i say i will give you as much support as i can. and to you, the british public, i know that there will be many people who are relieved and perhaps quite a few who will also be disappointed, and i want you to know how sad i am to be giving up the bestjob in the world. but them's the breaks. the prime minister speaking a short while ago. the final endgame for boris johnson began earlier this week when the former health secretary sajid javid and former chancellor rishi sunak resigned. that opened the floodgates. since then, a succession of ministers and aides have pulled their support — including, in a devasting blow, nadhim zahawi, who this morning — withdrew his support for the prime ministerjust two days after being made chancellor.

the list of names on the frame, those, lots supportive but who withdrawn their support in the past few days. jonathan blake has the story of this dramatic morning. downing street often draws a crowd but this morning real drama was about to unfold. the prime minister clung on overnight after cabinet colleagues told him his time was up and first thing there was silence from borisjohnson and his staff. turning up for work amid the turmoil, a last—ditch pledge of loyalty from one minister. the prime minister has my support. the prime minister has my support. the former— the prime minister has my support. the former chancellor off somewhere in a hurry. are you going to make a bid for leadership? _ leadership? another- leadership? i another urging leadership? - another urging the leadership? _ another urging the prime leadership? — another urging the prime minister to go. another urging the prime minister to no. another urging the prime minister to .o_ ., . , another urging the prime minister to 0. , ., ., , go. the facts are undeniable, he can't command _ go. the facts are undeniable, he can't command the _ go. the facts are undeniable, he can't command the confidence . go. the facts are undeniable, he | can't command the confidence of people, sufficient numbers, to serve in his government, he can't engender

the support of the parliamentary party and that is why it is so regrettable for us today, incredibly sad, for us to reach the conclusion that he sadly must stand down. the resignations kept coming including those only appointed two days ago, education secretary michelle donnellan said with great sadness she had to step down. and chancellor nadhim zahawi telling borisjohnson to go. then the news borisjohnson to go. then the news borisjohnson to go. then the news borisjohnson had accepted his fate. just through from my colleague chris mason _ just through from my colleague chris mason our— just through from my colleague chris mason our political— just through from my colleague chris mason our political editor _ just through from my colleague chris mason our political editor the - mason our political editor the expectation _ mason our political editor the expectation is _ mason our political editor the expectation is boris - mason our political editor the expectation is borisjohnson. mason our political editor the i expectation is borisjohnson will resign— expectation is borisjohnson will resign today _ resign today. relief - resign today. relief from l resign today. i relief from his resign today. - relief from his mps, resign today. _ relief from his mps, and resign toeey. — relief from his mps, and a resign ioriey. — relief from his mps, and a warning to go quickly. what has happened is ministers have seen what they have referred to as a lack of honesty and we can't have that. it is better he goes now than dragging on to the privileges committee for potentially finding he

misled the house. find committee for potentially finding he misled the house.— committee for potentially finding he misled the house. and questions from conservatives — misled the house. and questions from conservatives about _ misled the house. and questions from conservatives about what _ misled the house. and questions from conservatives about what happens - conservatives about what happens now. might it not be in our interests to speed _ might it not be in our interests to speed up— might it not be in our interests to speed up the transition as much as possible? — speed up the transition as much as possible? if— speed up the transition as much as ossible? , ., ., , ., possible? it is not tenable for him to continue _ possible? it is not tenable for him to continue as _ possible? it is not tenable for him to continue as caretaker. - to continue as caretaker. the _ to continue as caretaker. the governance - to continue as caretaker. the governance of- to continue as caretaker. the governance of this . to continue as caretaker. - the governance of this country cannot be allowed to fail. boris johnson's cannot be allowed to fail. borisjohnson's opponents say he cannot continue in any form. he needs to go completely, none of this nonsense about clinging on. he has inflicted lies, fraud and chaos in the country, and we are stuck with a government which is not functioning in the middle of a cost of living crisis. the functioning in the middle of a cost of living crisis.— of living crisis. the chaos and lack of living crisis. the chaos and lack of integrity _ of living crisis. the chaos and lack of integrity that _ of living crisis. the chaos and lack of integrity that has _ of living crisis. the chaos and lack of integrity that has characterised | of integrity that has characterised boris _ of integrity that has characterised borisjohnson's premiership has boris johnson's premiership has descended borisjohnson's premiership has descended into complete and utter farce at _ descended into complete and utter farce at a _ descended into complete and utter farce at a time when people in every part of— farce at a time when people in every part of the _ farce at a time when people in every part of the uk are struggling with very real—

part of the uk are struggling with very real challenges. as _ very real challenges. as preparations for a statement from borisjohnson were made, he was filling the big gaps in government left by resignations. and then the moment he had fought to resist had come. it is clearly now the will of the parliamentary conservative party that there should be a new leader of that there should be a new leader of that party and therefore a new prime minister. and i have agreed with sir graham brady, the chairman of our backbench mps that the process of choosing that new leader should begin now. he thanked conservative voters, admitted nobody was indispensable, and ended with a message of hope. i know that even if things can sometimes seem dark now, our future together is golden. thank you all very much. thank you all very much. thank you. jonathan blake, bbc news. the banister was speaking less than

an hour ago. chris mason is with me. he is resigning as leader but not prime minister. we got a mixed listening to the prime minister of the personal, political constitutional. we heard his deep regret he has been humiliated by his own party, a man who won a big majority for the party, gone within less than three years in office. we still have a constitutional question which is, is it possible, is it feasible for him to continue as prime minister until autumn? he made the argument it is and has been assembling a cabinet and has been assembling a cabinet and junior ministers to fill the gaps in government caused by the resignations. he wants to continue until the autumn. and a timetable will be set out as to how the leadership race will run which will determine who his successor is. but there are people within his own

party, others on the opposition benches, who say that is not tenable, he has lost the confidence of his own party and of parliament. labour are talking about bringing about a moment in the house of commons around a vote of confidence in the government. if the government loses that, there is a general election, and that matters because that might shift the mindset of conservative mps who don't fancy a general election to think where that moment to come about, they would rather put up with the leader they have just slung out and elect a new leader of their choice than run the risk of a general election. might they be swayed by what they have heard today? they will have opinions on the prime minister, but this statement, i am noticing on social media has not gone down with some tory mps, one saying, where is the humility? and he is blaming herd

instinct, why not blame himself? it is interesting, to what extent that statement will annoy some of them? the crucial thing we need to watch in the coming days is how does that statement go down amongst conservative mps and broadly within parliament, has it lanced the boil of the anger in the tory party who have said borisjohnson cannot continue as prime minister. he has said he won't do that beyond three months. how many does that persuade? some have come back into government from the backbenches. what is the mood of the party? and what are others tempted to do? borisjohnson will hope from what he has said today he has crossed back some control of events in the coming months. we will see how much in the coming days. we will talk in a short while, chris

mason with his thoughts as political editor. both the secretary of state for wales and northern ireland had resigned from the cabinet and were calling for the prime minister to go. in a moment, we'll be hearing from our correspondents in belfast and cardiff. but first, let's go to james shaw in glasgow. the first minister nicola sturgeon has spoken. she said she was relieved that chaos had come to an end but did not expect policy to change. is that a fair summary? it expect policy to change. is that a fair summary? it is fair to sa it is that a fair summary? it is fair to say it is _ is that a fair summary? it is fair to say it is no — is that a fair summary? it is fair to say it is no secret _ is that a fair summary? it is fair to say it is no secret boris - is that a fair summary? it is fair. to say it is no secret boris johnson to say it is no secret borisjohnson has never been as popular in scotland as in other parts of the country. when nicola sturgeon said she thought there would be widespread relief he would go,

perhaps she was reflecting what will be a common, not universal, view in scotland. but she did also say that she thought it would be an untenable proposition, the words she used, for borisjohnson to continue as caretaker prime minister for any extended period because that would mean what she called the complete farce of the last couple of days might continue. what was interesting is douglas ross, the leader of the conservatives in scotland, to some extent, echoed that, he thought borisjohnson should not extent, echoed that, he thought boris johnson should not stay extent, echoed that, he thought borisjohnson should not stay over an extended period, that some other figure should be put in place. but when you come to alisterjack, the scottish secretary, the representative of the uk cabinet in scotland, he was fiercely loyal to borisjohnson, unlike the secretaries of state in northern ireland and wales, sticking with him right until the end, describing him

as a friend and saying how sad he is borisjohnson is going, but it leaves open the question what will happen with independence. when you promise to take a different view on nicola sturgeon's intention to have a referendum next year? in northern ireland, the vast majority of politicians, unionist, nationalist or another, held boris johnson in low esteem. what people are asking is what the change in downing street will mean for the future of devolution in this part of the uk. there hasn't been a fully functioning devolved government at stormont since very when the democratic unionist party collapsed the power—sharing executive over the brexit trading arrangements, the northern ireland protocol. that was agreed between borisjohnson's government and the eu which creates a trade border between northern ireland, and england, scotland and wales so goods from great britain are checked to see if they are in

line with eu standards. unionist regard that as an internal trade border within the uk and not acceptable. the steering legislation —— legislation is instead giving ministers the power to scrap large parts of that protocol. the question is will a new prime minister take a more moderate line on the protocol critics of the legislation saying it breaks its national law, or will the newcomer maintained their position or harden it? that could affect relations with dublin, other eu member states, and non—unionist parties here. but a softer stance on the protocol would make the dup more reluctant to resurrect power—sharing in the assembly. one way or another it doesn't feel as if the crisis in westminster has made the crisis at stormont any easier. in wales perhaps not a huge surprise the resignation was welcomed by mark

drakeford. he said the uk needed a stable government so this was the right thing to do. it has also been welcomed by welsh conservatives, at least those willing to speak to members of the press. it's been a very fast turn over in less than 2a hours. the welsh secretary simon hart was until late last night seen as a borisjohnson royalist but he triggered a second wave of cabinet resignations last night. he has been replaced by robert buckland, is a man who was sacked by borisjohnson last year as the justice secretary. although he was born in wales and worked in wales as a lawyer, he is not a welsh mp. ordinarily that might ruffle some feathers but i think may see him as a bit of a caretaker in that position. the leader of the welsh conservatives, again a big fan of borisjohnson until very recently, has been in praising his legacy. out of that within the 2090 general election, winning seats like wrexham and bridgend, taking them from the hands

of labour. so whoever eventually takes over from borisjohnson, of labour. so whoever eventually takes overfrom borisjohnson, the question will be will they have the same appeal? can they appeal to traditionally labour welsh voters? that will be the next question taxing welsh conservative minds. many thanks, hywel griffith in cardiff and chris in belfast and james in belfast. thank you all of you. well, of course, attention will now turn to the question of who will succeed boris johnson eventually as prime minister. let's talk a bit about the process. that process of selecting a new conservative leader effectively starts now, and the timetable will be decided by the leadership of the 1922 committee — the committee backbench conservative mps. the rules — as they stand today — is that any candidate needs the support of eight conservative mps to take part.

to be nominated. then there follows a series of votes to leave just two candidates. then all members of the conservative party right across the uk — notjust mps — will decide the winner. and then to succeed borisjohnson as prime minister whenever that is. let's talk a little about that process and what it could mean with nick eardley, our political correspondent. that is it on paper, ok? there is the remaining question about whether borisjohnson is able to stay in there as prime minister for the borisjohnson is able to stay in there as prime ministerfor the next three months or so, that argument is already raging. when mps said earlier that the process for selecting a new leader can be truncated, can be rushed up, is all of that possible if the 1922 committee decides it wants that? it is all possible but i am being told that most likely thing is if there is a full election that a new leader will be in place until september.

there is a considerable body of the conservative party who want boris johnson out straightaway. i have spoken to lots of them this afternoon. they are going to try and find ways to do that. my understanding is as the process stands just now, understanding is as the process standsjust now, on understanding is as the process stands just now, on monday there will be a meeting to agree the rules, to decide this leadership election and the timetable. that process could begin almost immediately, with nominations from mps. the list would be whittled down to two before the summer holidays and a couple of weeks and if there are two candidates left and they both want to go out to hustings around the country, that process would then take place over the summer holidays. the expectation at the top of the tory party as they would be a new leader then in place by the return of mps in september. it is not clear if that is going to happen because i do think there is a lot of bad blood towards the prime minister. there are some mps who watched that speech and were not particularly happy with some of their language the prime minister

used about the herd mentality. they may decide to move quicker over the next couple of weeks. if i may decide to move quicker over the next couple of weeks.— next couple of weeks. if i was to ut ou next couple of weeks. if i was to put you on _ next couple of weeks. if i was to put you on the — next couple of weeks. if i was to put you on the spot _ next couple of weeks. if i was to put you on the spot and - next couple of weeks. if i was to put you on the spot and say, - next couple of weeks. if i was to | put you on the spot and say, ok, name three orfour put you on the spot and say, ok, name three or four people who are the current kind of favourites if you canvass opinion in different bits of the parliamentary party to start with, leave alone the party out there in the wider world, what kind of names would you come up with? i kind of names would you come up with? ., kind of names would you come up with? ~' , , ., with? i think the list will be long when it comes _ with? i think the list will be long when it comes but _ with? i think the list will be long when it comes but the _ with? i think the list will be long when it comes but the names i with? i think the list will be long i when it comes but the names that with? i think the list will be long - when it comes but the names that are standing out from the conversations i have had so far today are ben wallace, the defence secretary. richie sue knight, chancellor and a couple of days ago. any modern, stellar trade minister, didn't resign in the end. —— rishi sunak. and the other name tab in the back of your mind is liz truss, the foreign secretary. i think it could be a lot longer than that of if we could go a bit longer.— could go a bit longer. yes. nick eardley on _ could go a bit longer. yes. nick eardley on the _ could go a bit longer. yes. nick eardley on the process - could go a bit longer. yes. nick eardley on the process and - could go a bit longer. yes. nick. eardley on the process and some could go a bit longer. yes. nick- eardley on the process and some of the names that have emerged. only last night, the prime minister was

saying that he had this personal mandate, as he called it, to remain in power. that is what his supporters were saying. so what do the voters who gave borisjohnson a resounding election victory less than three years ago make of today's news? we can go to don valley in south yorkshire, one of the constituencies won by the conservatives in 2019 having been held by labourfor almost 100 years. these are precisely the seats where the boris factor was seen as important. our correspondent danny savage has been speaking to voters there today. in this conservative held seats in south yorkshire today, they were getting used to the idea of borisjohnson leaving office. that didn't necessarily mean they were happy about it, though. we have got nothing, really, to replace him. it's so sorry, i'm so sorry to see him go.

you were a supporter of borisjohnson? i was a supporter of him, yeah. i think he has done a lot for us. what do you think the alternative is? well, the labour party, and snp and liberals, and itjust makes you shudder when you think about it. the majority of people conceded that the game was up, and borisjohnson has missed the mark for a while. i think it's about time, really. obviously, with what has happened, he has but things too far, and he had to go in the end. he has been very untrustworthy. so, he had no other option, i don't think. this is an area which has a conservative mp at the moment. do you think if there was a general election today, it would return a conservative mp again? i doubt it, to be perfectly honest, i think labour would probably get in now. nearby, on the canal boats, peter backed the conservatives over brexit, but they lost him over partygate. my mum was in a nursing home, still is in a nursing home. and i've lost count of the numbers

of months and hours i haven't been able to go and visit her. so, you are particularly upset about partygate, and those sorts of events over the last couple of years? definitely, without a doubt. he abused his authority too much. he upset too many people. in the centre of thorne, they were talking about the latest developments over coffee, more dismayed conservative supporters. i'm concerned who is going to follow, who is going to do the job? because nobody has done anything for us. we live in a small village. i live in moor end and nothing gets done. and this is a conservative constituency. yes, yes! it feels like conservative support is waning in this marginal seat. whoever takes over needs a big swing back in their favour if they are to hold on. danny savage, bbc news, in the don valley. danny taking the temperature in don valley, the constituency which was

one of the red wall, as it's called, those former labour seats that turned conservative last time. of course, the prime minister's victory in 2019 would not have been possible without support from other kinds of areas, what we call the true blue, their traditional blue tory hotlines. —— heartlands. chichester is one such place — voters there have picked a conservative mp at every election since 192a — most recently, gillian keegan won the seat in 2017. our correspondent duncan kennedy has been guaging the mood of voters in that part of england. thank god something's happening and he's going. he's resigned? yes _ oh, no. in chichester, borisjohnson's resignation has brought jubilation and consternation. it's one of the conservatives' safest seats but today even some of his supporters are clear — this political affair is over.

your verdict? well, i never wanted him in in the first place because i thought he was always economical with the truth, i think, and it has proved to be the case, hasn't it? what's your view? i think it's time to go, really, isn't it? he tried to hang on but... yeah, not much to say, really, has to be done. are you a conservative? yes, lam. thank you. melanie luckes runs a bistro cafe here and is finding the cost of living crisis is affecting her business. she's always voted conservative and has been a supporter of the prime minister. what's your reaction to borisjohnson's resignation? i think it's a great shame. i think he's a very clever man. i think he's tripped himself up and it's a shame. i think he could've gone out on a much better note. but others here say borisjohnson should have gone a long time ago. clear—cut for you? 0h, totally, yes. definitely, yes. i think he's let the party down. he's done a lot of.

damage to the party. and i don't know how embarrassed| the conservative ministers must be of their constituencies. the conservatives have a 2a,000 majority here but this is one place where, for borisjohnson, it feels like the last tango in chichester. duncan kennedy, bbc news. two sets of views in terms of england, don valley and doncaster and then chichester. just to give us and then chichester. just to give us a sense of the kind of combination of support that boris johnson was able to put together in december 2019 to give him a majority of 80, for most prime ministers would be a guarantee of a full term but for many reasons we have reported on, it's come to an end long before a full term was up.

it is just two and half years ago borisjohnson was master of all he surveyed with a huge mandate from voters. today his party leadership comes to an end, his authority clearly has evaporated with most of his colleagues and from lots of voters, judging by those pieces, and with people openly questioning his integrity and indeed his honesty. we had earlier, he is really now about trying to define some kind of legacy. it's been a journey with many striking highs and lows — as our deputy political editor vicki young reports. applause the day that he fulfilled his childhood dream, walking into downing street as prime minister. the uk's decision to leave the eu had caused division and years of political upheaval. we're going to fulfil the repeated promises of parliament to the people and come out of the eu on october 31st — no ifs or buts.

brexit cause turbulence, but it was a global pandemic that dominated borisjohnson's time in office. borisjohnson's path to the top was a well trodden one. the 20th prime minister to be schooled at eton, he went on to study classics at oxford university. the house will proceed to a division. a career in journalism followed, with a stint in brussels for the telegraph, where he relished mocking the european commission. i don't want to be totally stitched up here... his profile was boosted by tv appearances. mrjohnson later became the mp for henley upon thames, which he held until he was elected mayor of london in 2008. he was the charismatic front man, happy to perform for the cameras. i'm going to have a pint of bitter. such an honour to have you here, mr mayor. oh, please, call me boris. oh, no... and the mishaps only added to the celebrity status. release the rings into position...now! in 2015, he returned to parliament.

the pasty of independence. and a year later endorsed a vote leave, becoming the figurehead for the brexit campaign, attracting adoring crowds as he travelled the country. his eventual reward was a stint as foreign secretary under theresa may. when bitter arguments over brexit brought her down... boris! ..conservative mps pinned their hopes on a man who they believed to be a winner. after three years and two missed deadlines, we must leave the eu. for the first few months of his premiership, brexit continued to be the most devices of issues. many in parliament were determined to stop the uk leaving the eu without a deal. mrjohnson kicked more than 20 rebel tory mps out of the party. he asked the queen to prorogue, orsuspend, parliament, limiting mps' opportunities to oppose him. the move was challenged in the supreme court. the decision to advise her majesty to prorogue parliament was unlawful. cheering

eventually, mrjohnson decided the only option was a general election. "get brexit done" was the slogan at the heart of the conservative campaign — it led to a decisive victory. dozens of labour mps were beaten in areas that the party had held for decades. we did it, we did it! we pulled it off, didn't we? borisjohnson returned as prime minister and this time brexit was assured. his personal life was changing too. during his second marriage, which lasted 25 years, he'd had several affairs. he'd been sacked as a conservative spokesman for lying about one of them. in spring 2020, he and his wife marina divorced. he later married carrie symonds, who'd previously worked as a conservative party adviser and the couple had two children. for his new government, though, everything was put on hold when it was hit by the worst health

crisis in modern times.