British Lawmakers Laud Failed Prime Minister Theresa May at Final Commons Session

LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 24: Prime Minister Theresa May leaves 10 Downing Street for her fin
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Oliver JJ Lane

Theresa May will travel to Buckingham Palace to meet with Queen Elizabeth II and formalise the end of her leadership after her final meeting as Prime Minister with Members of Parliament, where she was lauded with praise.

UPDATE 1430 — Theresa May’s final words as Prime Minister

Speaking before she got in the Prime Ministerial car for, presumably, the final time to see the Queen and make her resignation final, Theresa May hailed the civil service and government employees including NHS workers and teachers, and said she hoped her leadership of the country would inspire young women and girls to lead in future.

Interrupted by a protestor outside shouting “stop Brexit”, the Prime Minister composed herself for a moment and continued: “I think the answer to that is, I think not.”

The original story continues below…

While Theresa May traded barbs with Jeremy Corbyn over their respective records, Members of Parliament generally chose to praise the outgoing Prime Minister who was forced out of office over her failure to deliver on the most important political issue of her premiership. After what turned out to be the longest Prime Minister’s Questions session in history at over an hour, members broke with protocol by giving May a standing ovation as she walked out of the chamber.

Launching a final attack against Labour’s Jeremy Corbyn, May hid a sting in the tail of her mixed praise of the controversial figure by suggesting that he, too, should know when to quit leadership. She said: “Perhaps I could just finish my exchange with him by saying this: As a party leader who has accepted when her time was up, perhaps the time is now for him to do the same?”.

The outgoing Prime Minister’s motorcade then drove through London to the back entrance of 10 Downing Street, the official residence of the Prime Minister, where Theresa May’s last act of her leadership is reported to be having lunch with her husband. She is expected to make a short speech outside the house before going to see the Queen to make her resignation final.

Once Theresa May has seen the Queen and recommended to the monarch that Boris Johnson, her successor as leader of the Conservative Party, lead a new government the United Kingdom will officially be without a Prime Minister for as long as an hour while the Queen waits to make a new audience.

While at the Palace, Boris Johnson will be asked whether he believes he can command the support of Parliament invited to form a government by the Queen. While he will have been said to have kissed the Queen’s hands in a sign of fealty, in the 21st century this is a purely symbolic expression and it is more likely the pair will shake hands.

Boris Johnson was selected as Theresa May’s replacement this week after a long election process which saw Conservative members whittle down 14 initial challengers down to two, Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt, who were put to a vote of party members. Theresa May had held onto the leadership for three years after Brexit in 2016, promising to deliver the will of the British people as expressed in the referendum of that year.

Boris Johnson has also vowed to deliver on that vote, capitalising on the fact that he actually supported Brexit in 2016, unlike Theresa May who campaigned against it but subsequently said she accepted the result.

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