Boris Johnson to resign as prime minister in statement at 12.30pm

Boris Johnson will today resign as prime minister as he finally bows to the pressure of swathes of government resignations, making a statement at 12.30pm.

A No 10 source said Mr Johnson had spoken to the chairman of the Conservative backbench 1922 Committee, Sir Graham Brady, and agreed to stand down, with a new Tory leader set to be in place by the party's conference in October.

This story has been updated - click here for Boris Johnson's resignation statement

But several MPs are calling for a caretaker prime minister to be brought in to stop Mr Johnson leading through the summer.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said his party would bring forward a vote of no confidence against the PM "in the national interest" if Conservative MPs didn't oust him straight away.

However, Mr Johnson has already begun filling cabinet roles, including naming James Cleverly as the second new education secretary in less than 48 hours.

Politics Hub: Boris Johnson to make statement as resignation imminent - live reaction and analysis

The confirmation of Mr Johnson's departure came after his newly appointed Education Secretary Michelle Donelan resigned following just 36 hours in the post, and new Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi told the prime minister to "go now".

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace also said he had withdrawn his support for the PM, and earlier, Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis resigned from his post.

A Number 10 spokesman confirmed Mr Johnson would make a statement today, and Paymaster General Michael Ellis told the Commons it would come "shortly".

There has been intense pressure on Mr Johnson to quit after more than 50 resignations from all levels of government, and waves of backbenchers appealing for him to go.

The mass rebellion began on Tuesday after Downing Street admitted the PM knew about allegations of inappropriate behaviour against disgraced former Deputy Chief Whip Chris Pincher in 2019, but still appointed him in February.

Before the admission, government ministers had been sent out to defend Mr Johnson on the airwaves, and told to say their boss was unware of "specific" allegations.

Minutes after Mr Johnson apologised, saying appointing Mr Pincher was a "mistake", Health Secretary Sajid Javid announced his departure, followed swiftly by Chancellor Rishi Sunak.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 0:23 'Making a leadership bid, Mr Sunak?'

Their exits began an avalanche of resignations at all levels, from cabinet ministers to trade envoys.

But speaking at Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday, Mr Johnson dismissed calls to quit, saying: "The job of a prime minister in difficult circumstances when he has been handed a colossal mandate is to keep going, and that's what I am going to do."

And earlier this morning, a senior Number 10 source told Sky News the PM was remaining "absolutely defiant", "does not intend to resign", and wanted to "fight on".

Read more: The PM is going to resign - what happens now?

After the news broke of the impending resignation, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Simon Clarke said he was "deeply saddened" and he felt "a deep debt of personal loyalty" to him, but said it was "the right decision".

But Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng called the situation a "depressing state of affairs", saying: "So much needless damage [has been] caused."

He added: "We now need a new leader as soon as practicable - someone who can rebuild trust, heal the country, and set out a new, sensible and consistent economic approach to help families."

Other Tories are demanding a more immediate exit.

But Mr Johnson has begun appointing new ministers, including former business minister Greg Clark, who will take on the role of levelling up secretary, and former justice secretary Sir Robert Buckland, who will be Welsh secretary.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 6:17 From journalist to the prime minister, Sky News looks back at Boris Johnson's career.

Labour's Sir Keir said the PM "needs to go completely - none of this nonsense about clinging on for a few months", adding: "His own party have finally concluded that he is unfit to be prime minister. They can't now inflict him on the country for the next few months.

He said: "If they don't get rid of him, then Labour will step up in the national interest and bring a vote of no confidence, because we can't go on with this prime minister clinging on for months and months to come."

Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon tweeted there would be "a widespread sense of relief" that the "chaos" was coming to an end.

But the SNP leader added: "[The] notion of Boris Johnson staying on as PM until autumn seems far from ideal, and surely not sustainable?"

Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper said Mr Johnson would "go down in history as a lying law-breaking prime minister, who abused the trust and patience of the British people."

She added: "He will leave a stain on the Conservative Party that can't be removed."