Philip Hammond, Rory Stewart and David Gauke all quit as government exodus begins before Boris Johnson is appointed prime minister

Philip Hammond, Rory Stewart, David Gauke, David Lidington, Penny Mordaunt, Liam Fox and Greg Clark all resign Boris Johnson becomes UK's new Prime Minister
Katy Clifton24 July 2019
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Philip Hammond has resigned from government following Boris Johnson's appointment as new Tory leader.

The Tory MP quit on Wednesday after the results of the leadership postal ballot were announced, with Mr Johnson being voted Britain’s next prime minister.

His departure was swiftly followed by the resignation of Rory Stewart as International Development Secretary and David Gauke as Justice Secretary.

Then, shortly after 2pm, Cabinet Office minister David Lidington resigned saying that "after 20 yrs on the front bench it's the right moment to move on."

Later Penny Mordaunt added her name to senior figures to join the backbenches, along with Liam Fox as International Trade Secretary and Greg Clark as Business Secretary.

She wrote on Twitter: "Thank you to everyone who’s helped me get things done, especially our Armed Forces and civilians in defence for the last 85 days. We achieved much"

Housing, Communities and Local Government Secretary James Brokenshire added on Twitter that he will be leaving the Government.

He said: "After 13 years service on the front bench including 9 in Government will be heading to the backbenches.

"Has been a huge privilege to serve, but looking forward to being released from collective responsibility and campaigning on issues that matter to me and my constituents."

Northern Ireland Secretary Karen Bradley said she has left the Government while Transport Secretary Chris Grayling also later resigned, according to a source.

Education Secretary Damian Hinds confirmed he was also leaving the Government.

He tweeted: "It has been the greatest privilege to serve as Education Secretary. Thank you to the brilliant team at @educationgovuk.

"And thank you to everyone working in education and children's care, for all you do. I look forward to supporting the government from the backbenches."

Caroline Nokes confirmed she was leaving her post as immigration minister, tweeting: "It has been an enormous honour to serve in Theresa May's Government for 3 years.

"I look forward to returning to the backbenches and championing the issues of Romsey and Southampton North residents. My successor as Immigration Minister undoubtedly has a massive challenge ahead."

In his resignation letter, Mr Hammond told outgoing Prime Minister Theresa May that he believes her successor "must be free to choose a Chancellor who is fully aligned with his policy position".

He added: "It has been a privilege to serve as your Chancellor for just over three years since you assumed office in July 2016.

"Despite the uncertainty created by the unresolved issue of Brexit, we have been able to make notable progress in rebuilding the public finances and preparing the British economy for the opportunities ahead."

Philip Hammond has resigned as Chancellor
AFP/Getty Images

Mr Hammond continued: "We have made a huge commitment to investment in Britain's infrastructure, housing, Research and Development and technical education - all vital building blocks to overcome the low productivity that has plagued the UK, depressing wages and living standards.

"Public sector net investment is forecast to reach levels not sustained for 40 years from next year, and I am pleased to say that real wages are now growing robustly and are forecast to continue doing so for the remainder of the five-year forecast period.

"We can be proud of these achievements in difficult circumstances - and proud, too, of Britain's continued status as a global financial services hub, a magnet for high-growth technology businesses in Europe, and home to some of the world's best companies."

Mr Hammond's resignation comes after he confirmed on BBC One’s Andrew Marr Show that he would stand down if the former foreign secretary was voted into Number 10.

He said he would have no choice but to leave his post and return to the backbenches as he could not sign up to support Mr Johnson’s stance on accepting a no-deal Brexit.

Boris Johnson has become the new Tory leader
Getty Images

Asked by Mr Marr if he thought he would be sacked, Mr Hammond said on Sunday: “No, I'm sure I'm not going to be sacked because I'm going to resign before we get to that point.

"Assuming that Boris Johnson becomes the next prime minister, I understand that his conditions for serving in his government would include accepting a no-deal exit on the 31st October and it's not something that I could ever sign up to.

"It's very important that the prime minister is able to have a chancellor who is closely aligned with him in terms of policy and I therefore intend to resign to Theresa May before she goes to the Palace to tender her own resignation on Wednesday."

Philip Hammond appears on BBC's The Andrew Marr Show
REUTERS

Mr Hammond, a Remainer, also threatened to try to bring down a Johnson government to block no deal.

In a hard-hitting interview with French paper Le Monde, he was asked repeatedly if he would vote no confidence in the next government if it pursued a no-deal exit.

Refusing to rule out that course of action, he said: "I will argue there is no EU exit without Parliament's approval."

When asked explicitly if he would vote down Mr Johnson’s government, he added: "I do not exclude anything at the moment."

Dubbed "Spreadsheet Phil" for his dry image and cautious grip on the public purse strings, Mr Hammond managed to rise to Chancellor while leaving little trace in the public imagination.

His reputation - within Westminster at least - has been as a highly articulate and effective "safe pair of hands" who can plough a steady course without causing drama, upset or excitement.

It was exactly those qualities which made him the "reassuringly boring" choice for successive promotions to transport secretary, defence secretary, foreign secretary and eventually Chancellor of the Exchequer in 2016.

Despite being a contemporary of Mrs May at Oxford University, the Downing Street neighbours repeatedly locked horns with disagreements over when - and on what - to turn on the spending taps.

He remained resolute in his reluctance to splash the cash right up until the end of her time in office, and was said to be prepared to resign over the PM's plans to spend billions of pounds on projects to shore up her legacy.

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