Fighting back tears, a heartbroken Mrs May said that it had been ‘the honour of my life’ to hold the office and that she had ‘done my best’ when it came to Brexit in an address in Downing Street yesterday.
Mrs May will stay on as prime minister for now, but step down as Conservative leader on 7 June with a party leadership contest due to begin the following week. A new prime minister could be in place by the end of July.
In Guernsey, business and political leaders paid tribute to Mrs May’s efforts and expressed hope that her successor might be able to come to a resolution over Brexit – although there was a warning that the island had no option but to ‘wait and see’ what unfolded.
Policy & Resources president Deputy Gavin St Pier thanked Mrs May for the support she had given in ensuring that Guernsey’s interests had been taken into account even when they differed from those of the UK.
‘I also appreciated the assurances that the long-standing constitutional relationship should be respected, including that Westminster does not legislate for Guernsey on domestic matters without our consent.
‘Her impending departure is clearly not unexpected, given recent UK political developments. No doubt, in due course, there will be a reshuffle following the selection of a new prime minister and we look forward to working with the government headed by a new leader. In the meantime, I am confident that the relationships we have established will continue to ensure that Guernsey’s interests are looked after. We will, of course, also continue to directly represent our own interests across both Whitehall and Westminster.’
Former UK trade minister Lord Digby Jones, an island resident, said: ‘Theresa May run out of road and time. I salute her steadfastness and sense of public duty.
‘The new prime minister must be someone who can unite the country to defeat [Labour leader Jeremy] Corbyn because a moderate and an economically successful Britain, through an early settlement of Brexit, is good news for Guernsey.’
Paul Smith, chair of the Guernsey branch of ICSA: The Governance Institute, said: ‘I think she got herself stuck and couldn’t get a way out and nobody would actually accept what she was saying anymore.
‘So it needed a clean break. So I would view it positively as moving Brexit forward. This is probably the least worst option to get Brexit sorted and obviously getting Brexit sorted will be good for Guernsey.’
Christopher Jehan, chair of the Guernsey Investment & Funds Association, said: ‘It means that the UK may end up with a leader that might actually be able to make Brexit happen. Uncertainty for the last two years has been a bad thing.
‘We would like to think that Brexit will be good for our relationship with the UK because it won’t be hampered by EU regulations.’
Deputy Chris Green said: ‘I do have some sympathy for Theresa May. She inherited a poison chalice. Rather like the previous three Conservative prime ministers – Thatcher, Major and Cameron – her administration has been destroyed by the issue of Europe, which is such a toxic brew for the Conservatives.
‘I believe that Guernsey’s best interests require a proper deal to be struck between the UK and the EU, but unfortunately the prospects of that might seem bleak unless the next PM is prepared to compromise with opponents in the UK Parliament, and not just be led by the nose by the extreme right of their own party.’
He added: ‘I can’t see that a no-deal Brexit would be good for Guernsey, particularly in the short to medium term.’
Jon Moulton, the locally-based venture capitalist, said Mrs May’s decision to resign was ‘quite considerably overdue’ but cautioned against the chances of an immediate resolution to the Brexit crisis.
‘This is a change in leadership. It is not as yet anything to do with a solution to Brexit. We have no option but to wait and see.’
Out of the crowded field of potential leadership candidates, Mr Moulton said that he would support former Brexit secretary Dominic Raab because he was ‘competent’. However, things could develop ‘dramatically’ because of the large number of candidates.
Boris Johnson has already declared that he will run for the Tory leadership – although there could be more than a dozen rivals for the party crown.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said that Mrs May was right to resign and declared that that whoever replaced her as Tory leader must call an ‘immediate’ general election.
Jersey’s external relations minister Senator Ian Gorst, writing on Twitter, thanked Mrs May for her support of Jersey through the Brexit process – and expressed hope that her successor would recognise those interests as well.
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