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SO SHE’S GONE.
This morning, as expected, Theresa May said she’d be stepping down as Prime Minister.
Forlorn, left isolated by former allies, May’s time was finally up after repeatedly failing to get her Brexit deal through parliament. Her new plans that included a vote on a second referendum led a number of senior Tories to abandon her en masse, sealing her fate.
Not so much waiting in the wings as standing outside 10 Downing Street and peering through the windows are a number of candidates who’ve openly challenged May’s authority in the past and would dearly like to be the next prime minister and Conservative leader.
There’s one heavily tipped to succeed, but here’s a list of the favourites vying to be the top Tory.
The former mayor of London is seen as the most likely to succeed May at this time.
He campaigned for the UK to leave the EU back in 2016, and had initially seemed a likely candidate to succeed David Cameron before ally Michael Gove withdrew his support at the last minute.
Johnson was appointed as Foreign Secretary by Theresa May, but the gaffe-prone MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip often made headlines for the wrong reasons.
He frequently attacked Theresa May’s Brexit policies and resigned from as minister over the direction she was taking.
Bojo enjoys wide popularity among grassroots Conservatives, and enjoys the extra profile from his weekly column in the Daily Telegraph.
An endorsement from influential pro-Brexit backbencher Jacob Rees-Mogg has boosted his chances, but the 54-year-old has also earned plenty of enemies within the party for his behaviour.
Stance on Brexit: Has said that Britain has nothing to fear from a no-deal Brexit. He’s also on record as saying a no-deal is the closest to what the British people voted for in the 2019 election. With Boris the most likely person to become prime minister, Tánaiste Simon Coveney said today that a no-deal Brexit is as close now as it’s ever been.
Chances: He’s 6/4 favourite with the bookies, enjoys support from hardline Brexiteers and party grassroots. At this stage, it doesn’t look likely he’ll be beaten.
The former Brexit minister is perhaps best known for resigning his position because he was dissatisfied with Brexit deal he helped to negotiate.
The 45-year-old – who also has a blackbelt in karate – had quickly climbed the ministerial ladder after only joining the government in 2015 under former prime minister David Cameron.
Just before his departure as Brexit minister, Raab was widely mocked for saying that he “hadn’t quite understood” how reliant UK trade in goods is on the Dover-Calais crossing between Britain and France.
Remaining outside government since then, he has appeared in campaign mode in recent months, reportedly hiring staff and giving multiple newspaper interviews.
Stance on Brexit: Raab is an ardent eurosceptic who loathes the backstop and other provisions of Theresa May’s Brexit deal. A no-deal would also be more likely under his premiership
Chances: Raab is second favourite on 4/1. The problem for him is that he doesn’t offer much beyond what Boris Johnson already offers.
“Whatever charisma is, I don’t have it.” This is an actual thing that Michael Gove has said in the past, when he came 3rd in the race to be the prime minister after Cameron.
The Brexit campaigner Johnson’s leadership bid in 2016 but at the last minute announced his own intention to run, causing both men to lose out to May.
After a year in the political wilderness, he was appointed environment minister in June 2017 and has stayed in the headlines with a series of eco-friendly policy announcements.
While still one of the most ardent eurosceptics who remained in May’s faltering Cabinet, he did back her withdrawal agreement.
Stance on Brexit: Gove thinks a second referendum would be undemocratic and he has backed May in the past. He has said the UK needs to avoid a no-deal Brexit, but it remains to be seen how Prime Minister Gove could possibly deliver a deal that satisfies the EU and the House of Commons after Theresa May failed repeatedly and spectacularly.
Chances: He’s 11/1 to get in. Not looking great for him at the minute, but anything is possible.
The former House of Commons leader stole a march on her rivals by quitting her cabinet position on Wednesday, hastening the prime minister’s demise and staking out her pro-Brexit credentials.
She came 2nd to May in the 2016 leadership race, pulling out after coming under fire for saying that being a mother would give her an advantage as prime minister over childless May.
Another eurosceptic, Leadsom said in her resignation letter this week that she stayed in Cabinet “to shape and fight for Brexit” but “no longer believes that our approach will deliver on the referendum result”.
Leadsom said she had made some “uncomfortable compromises” up until now but cannot continue to support May.
Stance on Brexit: Wants Britain to leave the EU, and signalled that she didn’t want to leave without a deal while a minister. As with Gove, how to deliver that remains to be seen.
Chances: Also seen as a bit of a long shot, she’s 12/1 with the bookies.
The foreign minister supported remaining in the European Union in the 2016 referendum but has been highly critical of what he calls the “arrogant” approach since taken by Brussels.
A former Health Minister, Hunt replaced Boris Johnson as foreign secretary last year.
He was criticised for a speech last year that compared the EU to the former Soviet Union.
The 52-year-old has signalled his intent to run for the leadership and, like several other contenders, recently invited a Sunday newspaper into his home for a profile.
Stance on Brexit: His conversion from remainer to Brexiteer may not appear the most credible, but Hunt will hope he can run a successful leadership campaign pledging to unite the fractured Conservative party and also deliver Brexit.
Chances: Hunt is also 12/1 so will need to run a very effective campaign and convince the party he’s a more credible choice than Boris to have a chance.
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So Boris it is so … oh Dear, this is going to be car crash stuff
@@at: straight over the cliff edge.
The final nail in the British Empire. After they crash out and become an economic mess, Scotland will become independent rejoin the EU and the Northern Ireland will rejoin us within 20 years.
@@at: boris probably only planned on getting in after Brexit was delivered, so he could sit on the sidelines and spout rubbish all he wanted. If he’s in charge let’s see what he really thinks of a no deal Brexit
He was called Doris Johnson by an interviewee on BBC R4 this morning! ?
@@at: Great so the UK will be run by the love child of Selwyn Frogget and Worzel Gummidge.
@Humphrey Harold Haddington: NI will rejoin us? Looking forward to embracing their Orange Order heritage then?
@Gus Sheridan: if that is what it takes to embrace our own people who we abandoned many years ago so be it, bring it on.
@Gus Sheridan: Should be interesting for the Southerners to get a dose of what Northern Catholic Nationalists have been dealing with for decades.. and would be a case of eating humble pie then.
@Gowon Geter: In a United Ireland the DUP will have more influence in the Dail, a lot greater say than Parliament. They will be totally welcomed into a United Ireland, and they can have Orange Parades in Dublin, and all over Ireland. They will be able to celebrate King William anywhere in Ireland. And Irish People will join them and have a laugh in the Pub afterwards.
@Mark Andrew Salmon:
An ounce of breeding is worth a ton of feeding
Can’t wait until Boris meets Trump. It’ll be like Beavis and Butthead
@Shane Fleming: Borris is well capable of messing up big time once gets in and if he gets this job He is not just talented with his mouth but his actions as well.
Christ, Boris? Surely they can find someone else better than that?
@Do the Bort man: one word: Leo.
@Mushy Peas: Yawn
@Do the Bort man: a one eyed monkey is better qualified than Boris.
And we all thought it couldn’t get any worse… now Borris the buffoon…!!.
Feel like I’m on the deck of the titanic watch the iceberg ahead and the ships wheel is unattended.
@Kevin Conway: “Couldn’t get any worse” .. or course it can and it will now !!!
Whose the we ? the idiots attacking May you mean ? they will all get what they deserve now with Boris
Boris to bring in Nigel Farage as his “ Fook Off Eu “ Minister .
And then down the boozer for a few Pints .
What about Bran the Broken for leader.
@Paul Harvey: the have Boris the useless instead
@Lobert Rester: or Boris the Bonehead
When Boris is leader a lot of people will have to eat their words about May.
The so enlightened Irish commentators included.
@Gowon Geter: Just because Boris is am incompetent buffon, that doesn’t absolve May from blame. Under her leadership the UK has made a dogs dinner of 3 years of negotiations, has no clear strategy, repeatedly failed to win approval from her own party, sought multiple votes on the same issue, while refusing point blank to seek public approval on an approved agreement.
Not that any other Tory would do any better. I suspect the performance of the Brexit party in the EU elections will jusy solidify sentiment on both sides anyway.
@Shane McGettrick: Where did I say anything about blame ? Brexit is happening whether people choose to not belief it.
Calling May or the Brits names and other jargon has not helped either.
The Dogs dinner of the 3 Negotiation as you put it is not jut down to one thing or person, no one has tried to make it easy as now one should, but there was also no reason to make it as hard either.
I was happy when Brexit first came around, I had though common sense would prevail across all denominations, I hoped the EU would sit up and take note, address the very real issues in the EU, reform and make it better. Instead we got the EU is utopia line, why would anyone want to leave utopia etc etc. Which in fact only proved the Brexiteers point of view of the ‘Federal EU’.. When the Soviets would try to stop a state leaving the Soviet Union the EU and co would be on their high horses a bout freedom etc, but when someone tries to leave the European Union the EU turn into like the old Soviets
@Shane McGettrick:
There was a simple out at the start… She could have dragged up tapes of the Brexiteers in 2011 saying there would alway be two votes… Get played on continuous loop to the British People.
The she sends the Brexiteers to negotiate, they own the deal that comes back and the people vote on it…
Her hands a clean, either way…
Borris will not be good for Ireland during and post Brexit
The three desperados…….Boris, Putin and Trump.
Hold on to your seats!
@Josh Hanners: ahh, I’m no fan of him but Putin is a different animal altogether. Boris and Trump will say anything they think will be popular, Putin just forces his way through
If they elect Johnson they deserve everything they get.
We will have to change the name of our country to Steelers Wheel.
Michael Gove is a lovely woman.. Let her do it.
@Rob Cahill: hahaha. He’s worm slime, or she is. Either way.
General Election….. Farage next Prime Minister …. spike in milkshake sales!
And just when people thought that Brexit couldn’t get any worse…
Boris won’t be PM, while the conservative membership love him the majority of conservative MPs will resign rather than serve under him. They will probably go for Raab who is not much better than Boris.
Just when you thought that this couldn’t get any more stupider…
This is just mental stuff..
Boris is bloody hilarious, even a character in the cartoon Ben & Holly’s Little Kingdom is his image.
Wheres the carrot and the stick lol.
Dont worry both Brian Cowan and Alan Kelly have offered to advise
Don’t let boris’s buffroniey fool you. He is one ruthless fecker under that bad haircut. But this is a distaster waiting to happen
Oh dear, Oh dear, Oh dear, is this how we now find ourselves. While we may look at it as a funny joke, its not. On Dear
Bullet tooth Tony ?
@Adam Gibson: Yeah Vinnie Jones is on record as a big supporter of the Tories
@Cork Truck Driver: at least someone got it …..
Dont worry both Brian Cowan and Alan Kelly have offered to advise
have your say