London [UK], Jun 7 (ANI): British Prime Minister Theresa May formally resigned as the head of the Conservative Party on Friday, setting off the campaign among eleven Members of Parliament to replace her, both as the party head and the country's PM.

However, May will remain the acting Prime Minister until a new leader is chosen, reports Sputnik.

In a tearful speech last month, 62-year-old May had announced that she would step down as the PM and party head, in consideration to the fact that she failed to pass her Brexit agreement in the Parliament despite repeated efforts and negotiations with the Labour Party.

At least eleven Conservative MPs are aiming to replace her, including the country's former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, former Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab, and current Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, among others. The candidates are required to announce formal nominations next week, starting June 10.

May assumed the Prime Minister's office in July 2016 after her predecessor and party colleague David Cameron stepped down from the post, following the Brexit referendum, which saw 52 per cent of the electorate voting in favour of the country leaving the EU.

For long, May had been making efforts to push her beleaguered agreement or an alternative withdrawal deal through the British Parliament in a bid to prevent the UK from participating in the European Parliament elections. After the deal was rejected thrice in the UK parliament, May accepted her defeat and announced her resignation.

Last month, the EU leaders agreed to delay the Brexit process to another six months, with October 31 as the new date for the UK's withdrawal from the European bloc. (ANI) </s> U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May To Step Down June 7

Updated at 5:49 a.m. ET

Theresa May will step down as prime minister of the United Kingdom on June 7, she said Friday at No. 10 Downing St.

She came to the job in 2016 after U.K. voters backed plans to exit the European Union in a referendum. For the following three years, she attempted to navigate the difficult and complex process of making that happen.

"I feel as certain today as I did three years ago that in a democracy, if you give people a choice, you have a duty to implement what they decide," she said. "I have done my best to do that."

But she encountered ongoing opposition in the British Parliament, which repeatedly rejected her proposals to withdraw the U.K. from the EU.

"I believe it was right to persevere, even when the odds against success seemed high," May said Friday. "But it is now clear to me that it is in the best interest of the country for a new prime minister to lead that effort. So I am today announcing that I will resign as leader of the Conservative and Unionist Party on Friday the 7th of June so that a successor can be chosen."

May said the process for electing a new leader "should begin in the following week."

She said she informed the queen that she will continue to serve as prime minister until the process is completed. Reports from Reuters say that process could take six weeks, with May serving as a so-called caretaker prime minister.

"It is and will always remain a matter of deep regret to me that I have not been able to deliver Brexit. It will be for my successor to seek a way forward that honors the result of the referendum," May said.

Lawmakers in her Conservative Party had been pressuring her to resign and let a new leader see through the U.K.'s laborious planned withdrawal from the European Union.

On Thursday, May delayed plans to publish her latest bill to officially withdraw the U.K. from the EU. Parliament had already rejected May's earlier agreements negotiated with the EU three times this year.

Her latest withdrawal bill "tried to win over various interest groups by offering something for everyone: strengthened workers' rights to please the Labour left, an option for MPs to vote for a second referendum to entice Remainers," according to The Economist, which said the prime minister instead "ended up alienating them all."

There would have been "overwhelming pressure" for a no-confidence vote in May's leadership if she had not agreed on a departure date, Conservative lawmaker Geoffrey Clifton-Brown said earlier.

Adding to the pressure, the U.K. voted in European Parliament elections on Thursday, and the Conservatives are expected to do poorly when results are announced Sunday. A new Brexit Party, led by Brexiteer Nigel Farage, was leading polls.

President Trump is set to visit the U.K. from June 3-5. May had not wanted Trump's visit and D-Day anniversary celebrations "to be undermined by the unseemly spectacle of Tory MPs and ministers scrabbling and scrambling to replace her," according to ITV's Robert Peston.

Boris Johnson, a former foreign secretary, is seen as the current front-runner to take May's place. Johnson was a leader of the Brexit campaign in 2016.

In March, May offered to quit if Parliament were to pass her Brexit plan, but even that wasn't enough.

In April, the EU agreed to extend the U.K.'s deadline for passing a Brexit deal until Oct. 31. </s> Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption May on Brexit extension: "The UK should have left the EU by now"

European Union leaders have granted the UK a six-month extension to Brexit, after late-night talks in Brussels.

The new deadline - 31 October - averts the prospect of the UK having to leave the EU without a deal on Friday, as MPs are still deadlocked over a deal.

European Council President Donald Tusk said his "message to British friends" was "please do not waste this time".

Theresa May, who had wanted a shorter delay, said the UK would still aim to leave the EU as soon as possible.

The UK must now hold European elections in May, or leave on 1 June without a deal.

The prime minister will later make a statement on the Brussels summit to the House of Commons, while talks with the Labour Party, aimed at reaching consensus on how to handle Brexit, are set to continue.

Mrs May tweeted: "The choices we now face are stark and the timetable is clear. So we must now press on at pace with our efforts to reach a consensus on a deal that is in the national interest."

So far, MPs have rejected the withdrawal agreement Mrs May reached with other European leaders last year and they have voted against leaving the EU without a deal.

The EU has ruled out any renegotiation of the withdrawal agreement.

Before the summit, Mrs May had told leaders she wanted to move the UK's exit date from this Friday to 30 June, with the option of leaving earlier if Parliament ratified her agreement.

What is the reaction in the UK?

For Labour, shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer called the delay to 31 October "a good thing", saying businesses would be "relieved".

He added: "Negotiations are in good faith. We all feel a deep sense of duty to break the impasse.

"But there's also this question of how on Earth do we ensure that anything this prime minister promises is actually delivered in the future because of course she's already said she's going to step down, probably within months."

One government minister told BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg the latest delay to Brexit could mean a Conservative Party leadership contest after Easter, with a new prime minister potentially in place by June.

Former Brexit Secretary David Davis said: "There's been no progress whatsoever, really."

He added that it was still "difficult to see how" Mrs May could get her deal with the EU through Parliament and said: "The pressure on her to go will increase dramatically now, I suspect."

Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon tweeted her "relief" that the UK wouldn't be "crashing out" on Friday, adding that "allowing people to decide if they still want to leave is now imperative".

What was agreed?

A Brexit extension "only as long as necessary" and "no longer than 31 October" to allow for the ratification of the withdrawal agreement

The UK "must hold the elections to the European Parliament" and if it fails to do this, the UK will leave on 1 June

The European Council reiterates there can be no reopening of the withdrawal agreement negotiations

What was the EU's message?

Donald Tusk emerged from the talks - and a subsequent meeting with Mrs May - to address reporters at a news conference at 02:15 local time (01:15 BST).

"The course of action will be entirely in the UK's hands," he said. "They can still ratify the withdrawal agreement, in which case the extension can be terminated."

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Tusk on Brexit extension: "Please do not waste this time"

Mr Tusk said the UK could also rethink its strategy or choose to "cancel Brexit altogether".

He added: "Let me finish with a message to our British friends: This extension is as flexible as I expected, and a little bit shorter than I expected, but it's still enough to find the best possible solution. Please do not waste this time."

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said: "There will probably be a European election in the UK - that might seem a bit odd, but rules are rules and we must respect European law and then we will see what happens."

What did Theresa May say?

Mrs May spoke at 02:45 local time (01:45 BST). She said that, although the delay extends until 31 October, the UK can leave before then if MPs pass her withdrawal deal.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption BBC's Adam Fleming explains how the EU agreed a Brexit delay.

"I know that there is huge frustration from many people that I had to request this extension," she said. "The UK should have left the EU by now and I sincerely regret the fact that I have not yet been able to persuade Parliament to approve a deal."

She added: "I do not pretend the next few weeks will be easy, or there is a simple way to break the deadlock in Parliament. But we have a duty as politicians to find a way to fulfil the democratic decision of the referendum, deliver Brexit and move our country forward. Nothing is more pressing or more vital."

The PM said the UK would "continue to hold full membership rights and obligations [of the EU]" during the delay.

Trick or treat? Halloween deadline is both

You couldn't quite make it up. The new Brexit deadline is, you guessed it, Halloween.

So to get all the terrible metaphors about horror shows, ghosts and ghouls out of the way right now, let's consider straight away some of the reasons why this decision is a treat in one sense, but could be a trick too.

A treat? First and most importantly, the EU has agreed to put the brakes on. We will not leave tomorrow without a deal.

The prime minister's acceptance that leaving the EU without a formal arrangement in place could be a disaster won out.

And there are quite a few potential tricks. This new October deadline might not solve very much at all.

This could, although I hate to say it, just make way for months of extra gridlock before the UK and the EU find themselves back here in a similar situation in the autumn.

Read Laura's blog here

How did the EU leaders decide?

The EU had been split over the length of delay to offer the UK, and by law its other 27 member states had to reach a unanimous decision.

Although other countries backed a longer delay, French President Emmanuel Macron pushed for a shorter extension. He called the 31 October deadline "a good solution".

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption German Chancellor Angela Merkel had argued for a longer delay

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, the Irish prime minister, said the extension gave the UK time "to come to a cross-party agreement".

Risk of no-deal postponed

Fudge and can-kicking are the EU-familiar words that spring to mind at the end of this Brexit summit.

After all the drama and speculation leading up to the meeting, effectively all that happened here is that the threat of a no-deal Brexit has been postponed for another six months.

Time enough for the EU to hold European parliamentary elections, choose a new president of the European Commission and pass a new budget - without EU leaders having to keep one eye at least on the day-to-day dramas in the House of Commons.

Despite EU leaders' rhetoric beforehand, they granted this extension without hearing a convincing plan of Brexit action from Theresa May.

In the summit conclusions there is no evidence of the punitive safeguards mooted to ensure the UK "behaves itself" - refraining from blocking EU decisions - as long as it remains a club member.

Yes, EU leaders worry about who might replace Theresa May as prime minister. Yes, they're concerned these six months could fly past with the UK as divided as ever but their message to the UK tonight was: "We've done our bit. Now you do yours. It's up to you. Please use the time well." </s> British Prime Minister Theresa May may step down as soon as Friday amid a mutiny among her cabinet members and her inability to get Parliament to sign off on a deal to exit the European Union, according to a report.

House of Commons leader Andrea Leadsom resigned on Wednesday over May’s Brexit policy and a number of other cabinet members have said that the prime minister has reached “the end of the line,” the BBC reported on Thursday.

And May’s bill for a new Brexit deal now isn’t expected to be published or voted on until next month.

The prime minister had planned to have the bill published on Friday.

But Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt shoved aside speculation about May’s resignation, saying she would still be the prime minister when President Trump arrives in Great Britain ​o​n June​ 3​.

“Theresa May will be prime minister to welcome him and rightly so​,” Hunt said. ​

Leadsom said she stepped down because May’s Brexit plan had “elements I cannot support, that aren’t Brexit.”

May said she was sad to lose someone of Leadsom’s “passion, drive and sincerity.”

May had promised to step down if lawmakers approve her Brexit deal but the calls for her to set a date have become louder and more persistent.

Britain voted 52 percent to 48 percent in June 2016 to leave the European Union, but Brexit legislation has been rejected three times.

​It now faces a Oct. 31 deadline to leave the European Union.​ </s> EMBATTLED UK prime minister Theresa May has had a turbulent day of high profile ministerial resignations and backlash against the deal.

EMBATTLED UK prime minister Theresa May has had a turbulent day of high profile ministerial resignations and backlash against the deal.

Theresa May has turbulent day of high-profile resignations and backlash

It is reported that Mrs May has offered the job of Brexit secretary to Michael Gove - his decision is believed by many to be key to the survival of the Tory leader.

Today letters to the 1922 Committee have been pouring in seeking a 'no confidence' vote in Mrs May - there must be 48 to trigger such a vote.

Meanwhile, European Council President Donald Tusk has signalled that he still hopes Brexit can be averted but said the EU is prepared if there is a "no-deal scenario".

Speaking as chaos continues in Westminster over the proposed Withdrawal Agreement wiht the UK, Mr Tusk said the EU "is prepared for a final deal with the United Kingdom in November."

He also told reporters in Brussels that; "We are also prepared for a no-deal scenario but of course we are best prepared for a no-Brexit scenario."

After a days of resignations among her ministers, British Prime Minister Theresa May is due to give a press conference at 5pm.

Earlier, the British Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab and three other ministers resigned over Theresa May's Brexit deal, in a massive blow to her plans.

Mr Raab, who only took over in the summer after David Davis resigned in protest over the British Prime Minister's withdrawal strategy, said he "cannot in good conscience support the terms proposed for our deal with the EU".

His surprise departure on Thursday came amid a furious backlash from Brexit-backing Conservatives to the deal agreed by UK and EU negotiators four months ahead of the UK's scheduled withdrawal on March 29.

Hours earlier Shailesh Vara had quit as minister of state for Northern Ireland, saying Mrs May's agreement, "leaves the UK in a halfway house with no time limit on when we will finally be a sovereign nation".

Conservative MP Jacob Rees-Mogg has handed in his letter of no-confidence to Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee, saying Ms May's Brexit deal "has turned out to be worse than anticipated and fails to meet the promises given to the nation by the Prime Minister".

In his letter to the Prime Minister, Mr Raab said the deal represented a "very real threat to the integrity of the United Kingdom" because of provisions for Northern Ireland.

He also said he could not accept "an indefinite backstop arrangement" for the Irish border.

He said: "No democratic nation has ever signed up to be bound by such an extensive regime, imposed externally without any democratic control over the laws to be applied, nor the ability to decide to exit the arrangement."

The work and pensions secretary Esther McVey has also stepped down on Thursday morning.

She said the Brexit deal “does not honour the result of the referendum”.

In a resignation letter posted on Twitter, Ms McVey cited concerns over the future of the Union and a lack of control over money, law, borders and trade policy under a deal she felt kept the UK too close to Brussels.

She wrote: "The British people have always been ahead of politicians on this issue, and it will be no good trying to pretend to them that this deal honours the result of the referendum when it is obvious to everyone that it doesn't.

"We have gone from no deal is better than a bad deal, to any deal is better than no deal.

"I cannot defend this, and I cannot vote for this deal. I could not look my constituents in the eye were I to do that.

"I therefore have no alternative but to resign from the Government."

Suella Braverman has also resigned as a Brexit minister, her office said.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan has resigned as a parliamentary private secretary in the Department for Education, saying she cannot support the Brexit deal after negotiations “built on the UK trying to appease the EU”.

Mr Raab added: "Above all, I cannot reconcile the terms of the proposed deal with the promises we made to the country in our manifesto at the last election.

"This is, at its heart, a matter of public trust."

Ms May is due to hold a press conference at 5pm.

Tánaiste Simon Coveney has said there may not be “a majority for any way forward in Westminster” as UK minsters resign over the Brexit deal.

Taking questions on the draft deal in the Dáil, Mr Coveney said it would “protect Ireland’s core interests now and into the future”.

He praised the work of Irish diplomats involved in the negotiations over the past two years, saying they did an “extraordinary job to build and maintain EU unity around many off the Irish vulnerabilities”.

And he said the EU’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier had shown “extraordinary capacity to understand the detail” of the Irish concerns.

Asked by Fianna Fáil’s Darragh O’Brien about the instability in the UK government, Mr Coveney replied: “Of course there are challenges to selling any package in United Kingdom.

“Many people would say there isn’t a majority for any way forward in Westminister.”

But he added that British Prime Minister Theresa May has “shown a capacity to get things done in very difficult circumstances”.

Mr O’Brien questioned whether the Government had been too triumphalist in their public statements since the deal was published.

“The time for victory and celebration is when this draft agreement is ratified and satisfied by all,” he said, adding that “every statement being made in Ireland is being scrutinised”.

However, Mr Coveney rejected this claim. He argued that the Government had a duty to explain what was in the deal to the Irish people.

The Minister said he was giving “reassurance” to people who were “very sceptical that a deal could be done” to maintain open trade on this island.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Mrs May spoke by phone this morning, Independent.ie has learned.

It is understood Mr Varadkar offered the embattled PM his “support” amid a string of ministerial resignations in Westminster.

They pledged to “work together” on the future relationship between the UK and EU so that the Irish backstop “never needs to be invoked”.

Earlier, the Brexit deal that ensures no hard Border on this island was hailed as a major victory for Ireland.

While Mr Varadkar said Brexit is "something we regret", he insisted the best possible Withdrawal Agreement has been negotiated.

He said other EU members had taken on Irish concerns and helped protect the peace process, the common travel area and our economy.

"This is one of the better days in politics," he said.

Mr Varadkar praised Mrs May for being "true to her word" by ensuring there will be no hard Border.

Andrea Leadsom has insisted she has no plans to quit the Government and will support Theresa May in securing a Brexit deal.

The Commons Leader, who attends the UK Cabinet as part of her role, hit back after her SNP counterpart Pete Wishart joked she had upset his "Brexit resignation bingo coupon", adding: "I had her definitely down as a resigner."

Mrs Leadsom replied: "Normally I'm very happy to entertain (Mr Wishart's) banter but I think all he's done today is to demonstrate he's not very good at bingo."

She added: "I am staying in Government because there is more work to be done to get the Brexit that the Prime Minister wants to deliver to the people, and therefore I am determined to support her to do that.

"Now, him bantering about it and mocking it is all very well, but he doesn't suggest anything else and his party has form for ignoring the will of a referendum in Scotland that voted to stay in the United Kingdom.

"What are they doing sitting there? All they want to do is break up the United Kingdom, and against the will of Scottish fishers keep them in the Common Fisheries Policy. How much sense does that make?"

The pair's exchanges came at business questions and amid the backdrop of Cabinet resignations over Mrs May's draft Brexit withdrawal agreement.

However, there will now be major concerns that the ministerial resignations in London will be followed by more in the British Cabinet - meaning that any deal Brexit will once again be up in the air.

Representatives from the SDLP, Sinn Fein, Alliance and the Northern Ireland Green Party have arrived at the Department of the Taoiseach in Dublin for a meeting with Mr Varadkar to discuss the draft Brexit agreement.

SDLP leader Colm Eastwood said: "It will be a difficult few days for Theresa May but we need to focus on the positive and make sure the backstop is backed."

The resignations came as European Council president Donald Tusk announced an extraordinary meeting of EU leaders in Brussels on November 25, at which the withdrawal agreement and a political declaration on future relations will be finalised and formalised.

Westminster is braced for further resignations, amid widespread expectations that the British Prime Minister may face a challenge to her position from Conservative MPs submitting letters of no confidence in her leadership.

Mr Raab had been a surprise choice as Brexit Secretary when Mr Davis, along with foreign secretary Boris Johnson and Brexit minister Steve Baker, resigned in protest at Mrs May's Chequers plan in July.

As the UK's ministerial point man in negotiations he made repeated trips to Brussels for talks with EU negotiator Michel Barnier as he and civil servants tried to hammer out a workable withdrawal agreement.

The pound fell heavily against most major currencies after his resignation. Sterling dropped 1.1pc to 1.28 US dollars and was 1.2pc lower at 1.13 euros.

Shadow Cabinet Office minister Jon Trickett said the Government was "falling apart before our eyes as, for a second time, the Brexit Secretary has refused to back the Prime Minister's Brexit plan".

"This is the 20th minister to resign from Theresa May's Government in her two-year premiership," he said.

"Theresa May has no authority left and is clearly incapable of delivering a Brexit deal that commands even the support of her Cabinet, let alone Parliament and the people of our country."

Remain-supporting Tory MP Anna Soubry added on Twitter that Mr Raab's resignation "marks the end of PMs Withdrawal Agreement" and possibly her premiership.

Ms Soubry added: "No PM deserves to be so badly treated.

"Raab signed up to her Withdrawal Agreement allowing her to make her statement after Cabinet knowing he'd resign in time for the 9am News bulletins the next morning. Shameful."

Mrs May now faces a battle to get it through Parliament as pro-Leave Conservative MPs - as well as some Remainers - lined up to condemn the plan, accusing her of breaking promises and leaving the UK at the mercy of Brussels.

In a resignation statement, North-West Cambridgeshire MP Mr Vara - who was promoted by Mrs May as recently as July - said: "We are a proud nation and it is a say day when we are reduced to obeying rules made by other countries who have shown that they do not have our best interests at heart.

"We can and must do better than this. The people of the UK deserve better."

Mr Vara, a former Conservative vice chairman who has served as a whip and on the frontbenches for the bulk of his career since entering Parliament in 2005, backed Remain in the 2016 referendum.

In Brussels, Mr Tusk was handed a copy of the 585-page withdrawal agreement by EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier.

Ministers and ambassadors of the remaining 27 EU states will work to finalise by next Tuesday the political declaration on future relations with the UK, published in outline form on Wednesday, he said.

Welcoming the UK Cabinet's collective agreement to accept the withdrawal document, Mr Tusk said: "Of course, I do not share the Prime Minister's enthusiasm about Brexit as such.

"Since the very beginning, we have had no doubt that Brexit is a lose-lose situation and our negotiations are only about damage control."

And he sent a message to the British people: "As much as I am sad to see you leave, I will do everything to make this farewell the least painful possible, both for you and for us." </s> The U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May looks set to step down in June or July after a meeting with disgruntled lawmakers that left her "tearful," according to British media.

In the Thursday meeting with the 1922 Committee, an influential group of Conservative lawmakers from her own party, the prime minister agreed to step down if her Brexit deal is voted down when she brings it to the House of Commons in the week beginning June 3.

Senior political sources told the BBC she promised to resign if the vote fails and that it was "inconceivable" May would stay in power after the next vote.

The Daily Telegraph, a newspaper favoring Brexit, reported the meeting was "emotionally charged" and that Prime Minister May will step down by June 30 at the latest.

However, the BBC reported an exact date has not been set and that the prime minister had only agreed to a "timetable for departure."

The prime minister had previously said she would resign if her Brexit deal, which has been voted down three times this year, was accepted by British lawmakers.

That announcement was an attempt to get more lawmakers to side with the deal, but it now seems that whatever happens, a new prime minister will be in place by the deadline for the U.K. to leave the European Union on Oct. 31 of this year.

It is not only the prime minister's own future at stake. May had spent the last six weeks negotiating with Jeremy Corbyn in a bid to find a compromise agreement that would pass through the House of Commons.

Friday, the talks broke down, with Corbyn saying the negotiations "have gone as far as they can" in a letter to the prime minister.

This means that when Parliament votes again on Brexit next month, the deal will effectively be the same as the one defeated by a historic margin in January and again in March.

May's Brexit deal has come under criticism from lawmakers of all political persuasions. Some suggest the deal will leave the U.K. too closely aligned to the EU, while others believe the deal will damage the U.K.'s economy.

Conservative lawmakers within May's own party will spend the coming months jostling for positions. When she resigns, a leadership election will take place. Boris Johnson, the former mayor of London, has already put himself forward as a future candidate.

The current deadline for leaving the European Union is set at Oct. 31 of this year. The original date for departure was March 29, but the government were forced to ask the EU for an extension after they were unable to agree a deal, despite negotiating with the EU for the better part of three years.

If Parliament cannot agree a deal, the U.K. will leave a "no deal" Brexit, unless lawmakers decide to cancel Brexit entirely by revoking Article 50, the legal mechanism for leaving the EU.

The next vote on May's Brexit deal will be taking place the same early June week President Donald Trump, who has been critical of May's Brexit deal, embarks on a state visit to the U.K. </s> UK Prime Minister Theresa May says she has asked EU to delay Brexit until June 30

LONDON (AP) — UK Prime Minister Theresa May says she has asked EU to delay Brexit until June 30. </s> British Prime Minister Theresa May departs from 10 Downing Street ahead of Prime Ministers Questions session (PMQs) in Parliament, London on May 22, 2019.

British Prime Minister Theresa May could announce her resignation in the next few days, according to U.K. media reports, as she faces pressure from members of her own party to step down.

The Times newspaper reported on Thursday morning that May will announce that she will quit her post as early as Friday. The paper did not cite a source and Downing Street would not comment on the reports when contacted by CNBC.

May will remain as prime minister while her successor is elected in a two-stage process under which two final candidates face a ballot of 125,000 Conservative Party members, the newspaper said.

Pressure appears to have been mounting on the prime minister to announce her departure in the last 48 hours amid a backlash of her offer of a "new" Brexit plan that she wanted to put before Parliament.

Lawmakers have already rejected May's Brexit deal three times so the prospect of another vote on the withdrawal agreement, that many opposition and Tory lawmakers have already rejected and said had not changed much, was met with disbelief in many quarters.

On Wednesday night, the Telegraph's deputy political editor reported that the influential 1922 Committee (a powerful group of pro-Brexit Conservative party lawmakers) wanted May to announce on Friday that she will step down as party leader by June 10.

The Telegraph newspaper reported Thursday that May "is under siege" in Downing Street and had refused to meet key ministers Jeremy Hunt and Sajid Javid.

The latest turmoil in the British political establishment comes after May said she had made a number of changes to the Brexit plan she had offered members of Parliament (MP) – including the offer of a vote on whether to hold a second referendum – but opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn said he'd oppose the deal, as did other opposition parties, and significant Tory MPs opposed the plans too.

The prime minister was dealt a blow Wednesday evening when senior minister Andrea Leadsom quit her post saying that May's new Brexit plan contained "elements I cannot support, that aren't Brexit."

As a backlash to May's plan grew, the influential 1922 Committee reportedly met Wednesday evening and held a secret ballot on whether May's leadership could be challenged in a no-confidence vote.

Current rules state that a leader can only face one confidence vote within a 12-month period and May survived a confidence vote last December.

The results of the 1922 Committee's votes are reportedly in sealed envelopes and these will be opened if May does not agree to stand down by June 10.

The pound hovered around a 4-month lows as opposition to May's plan emerged Wednesday and slipped to $1.2625 overnight, its lowest since January 4. </s> Theresa May is set to agree her resignation timetable in two weeks' time after a showdown meeting with Tory MPs.

Cabinet ministers and the PM's allies now accept there'll be a full-blown Tory leadership contest before the summer holiday after her two-hour summit with the 1922 Committee.

MPs on the powerful body gave her one last chance to get her Brexit Withdrawal Agreement Bill through the Commons - stepping back from calls to quit now.

But after a "very frank" meeting, 1922 Committee chairman Sir Graham Brady revealed Mrs May will meet him again in around two weeks - "to agree a timetable for the election of a new leader."

And before the meeting had even finished, Boris Johnson officially announced he'll run for the leadership.

Sir Graham, the "shop steward" for Tory backbenchers, met Mrs May today with the 18-strong executive of the 1922 Committee.

Despite a split down the middle of the powerful group, they agreed not to demand an immediate resignation timetable.

Instead Theresa May will have until after the 'second reading' vote on her Brexit Withdrawal Agreement Bill.

The Bill - the FOURTH vote on her Brexit deal - is due before MPs in the week of June 3, at the same time as Donald Trump's State Visit.

But privately, government sources appear to accept there will be a leadership contest before the summer holiday.

A No10 insider told the Mirror Mrs May was still 80 MPs short of winning the vote.

The insider admitted the prospect of victory was slim and added: "If the Bill falls, everyone knows what comes after that.

"It's the last act of this government."

The No10 insider also dismissed suggestions the PM could stay and enter further talks with the EU.

"She doesn't want to go to Brussels again - ever," they said.

Meanwhile a normally loyal Cabinet minister said they want MPs to choose their final two leadership candidates before the summer break.

That way Tory members could vote in August while EU officials are on holiday - and have a leader in place by early September.

"They can take over in early September, have a few weeks in Parliament to get used to PMQs and things like that," the minister said.

"You need to have a contest.

"If there had been a contest last time I think Theresa May would still have won but it would have exposed some problems and perhaps she would have had a different leadership style."

"The Prime Minister is determined to secure our departure from the European Union and is devoting her efforts to securing the second reading of the Withdrawal Agreement Bill in the week commencing June 3 2019 and the passage of that Bill and the consequent departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union by the summer.

"We have agreed that she and I will meet following the second reading of the Bill to agree a timetable for the election of a new leader of the Conservative and Unionist Party."
UK Prime Minister Theresa May says that she will detail the timetable for her resignation after the Brexit vote in June.