Boris Johnson arrives at queen’s estate to offer resignation

PTI, Sep 6, 2022, 4:21 PM IST

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has arrived at Queen Elizabeth II’s estate in Scotland to formally offer his resignation to pave the way for Liz Truss to succeed him amid an acute cost-of-living crisis facing the country.

Johnson will finally leave office following a carefully choreographed audience with the monarch at Balmoral that is taking place two months after he announced his intention to step down. Truss, who was named leader of the ruling Conservative party on Monday, will be appointed prime minister during her own meeting with the queen a short time later.

Johnson, 58, became prime minister three years ago after his predecessor, Theresa May, failed to deliver Britain’s departure from the European Union. Johnson later won an 80-seat majority in Parliament with the promise to “get Brexit done.” But he was forced out of office by a series of scandals that culminated in the resignation of dozens of Cabinet secretaries and lower-level officials in early July. He alluded to that downfall in his leaving remarks, saying he was handing over the baton to Truss in “what has unexpectedly become a relay race.”