Theresa May will resign as Prime Minister on June 7. 

Pressure had been building on the leader of the Conservatives after several failed attempts to deliver Brexit.

At 10am this morning she stood outside number 10 Downing Street and  told the country of her regret that she had been unable to persuade MPs to support her deal.

She said: "It is and will always remain a matter of deep regret to me that I was not able to deliver Brexit."

What followed was deeply personal and showed a different side to the woman who has been Maidenhead's MP for 22 years and was Home Secretary for six. 

Tears filled her eyes as she said: "I will shortly leave the job it has been has been the honour of my life to hold - the second female Prime Minister but certainly not the last.

"I leave with no ill but enormous and enduring gratitude to have had the opportunity to serve the country I love."

Poignantly for the people of the Royal Borough she invoked the memory of Maidenhead's legendary hero the late Sir Nicholas Winton, the man who helped save the lives of 669 Jewish children by organising their escape from Czechoslovakia as the nazis approached.

She said: "He took me to one side and told me to never forget that compromise is not a dirty word. Life depends on compromise."

The message was clear.

Mrs May will remain as PM long enough to greet American president Donald Trump when he makes his state visit.