Liz Truss resigns after 44 days to be UK’s shortest-ruling prime minister

(Bloomberg) — Prime Minister Liz Truss resigned after a brief and chaotic tenure that saw her announce a massive package of unfunded tax cuts before unwinding most of it in the face of a market rout.

Truss, 47, quit after just 44 days in office, and will become the shortest-ruling prime minister in British history. She said she would remain as prime minister until the Conservative Party chooses her successor, with the process to be completed within a week.

She came to power in early September promising an all-out push for growth, but her program proved unpalatable to financial markets as both the pound and gilts tanked amid concerns about how she’d pay for her economic plans.

Her departure leaves the ruling Conservative Party badly damaged, languishing more than 30 points behind Labour in the polls after 12 1/2 years in power. Her successor will become the party’s fifth premier in less than seven years since the 2016 Brexit referendum ushered in a period of unprecedented chaos in British politics. 

Read her full statement below:

“I came into office at a time of great economic and international instability. Families and businesses were worried about how to pay their bills. Putin's illegal war in Ukraine threatens the security of our whole continent. And our country has been held back for too long by low economic growth.

“I was elected by the Conservative Party with a mandate to change this. We delivered on energy bills and on cutting national insurance. And we set out a vision for a low tax high growth economy that would take advantage of the freedoms of Brexit.

“I recognize though given the situation I cannot deliver the mandate on which I was elected by the Conservative Party. I have therefore spoken to His Majesty the King to notify him that I am resigning as leader of the Conservative Party.

“This morning I met the chairman of the 1922 Committee, Sir Graham Brady. We've agreed that there will be a leadership election to be completed within the next week. This will ensure that we remain on a path to deliver our fiscal plans and maintain our country's economic stability and national security.

“I will remain as Prime Minister until a successor has been chosen. Thank you.”