The Home Secretary Priti Patel has announced that she will quit frontline politics hours after Liz Truss was announced as the next Prime Minister.
In a letter to Boris Johnson outlining what she considered her achievements in office, Ms Patel said she would head to the backbenches after a new Home Secretary is appointed when Ms Truss takes office on Tuesday.
She said: “I congratulate Liz Truss on being elected our new Leader, and will give her my support as our new Prime Minister.
“It is my choice to continue my public service to the country and the Witham constituency from the backbenches, once Liz formally assumes office and a new Home Secretary is appointed.
“From the backbenches, I will champion many of the policies and causes I have stood up for both inside and outside of Government”.
Ms Truss, 47, is expected to appoint fresh faces to the Cabinet once in place as Prime Minister after winning the backing of 81,326 Tory members, compared with 60,399 for rival Rishi Sunak.
However, when asked if he would consider a role in the Cabinet, Mr Sunak told the BBC it was “just not something I’m thinking about.”
He vowed to stay on as MP for Richmond in North Yorkshire and to contest the seat at the next election, saying he was not “going anywhere”.
Ms Truss will face a formidable in-tray upon assuming office, with the UK facing an economic crisis this winter and energy bills surging to unprecedented levels.
