Tearful Theresa May resigns as British PM over Brexit failure

British Prime Minister Theresa May on Friday announced in an emotional address that she will step down as Conservative leader on June 7 after failing to persuade MPs to support her Brexit deal.

"It is and will always remain a matter of deep regret to me that I have not been able to deliver Brexit," May, her voice breaking with emotion, said in a statement outside her Downing Street residence.

The resignation will signal the formal start of a leadership contest during which May would remain as caretaker prime minister.

"I will resign as leader of the Conservative and Unionist Party on Friday, 7th June," May said.

"The process for electing a new leadership should begin in the following week," she said.

The leadership race is expected to take several weeks.

The early front-runner is Boris Johnson, a former foreign secretary and strong champion of Brexit.

Britain is currently due to leave the EU on Oct. 31, but Parliament has yet to approve divorce terms.

Pressure on May to quit over her failure to get Parliament's approval for a European Union divorce deal reached critical point this week as House of Commons Leader Andrea Leadsom quit and several Cabinet colleagues expressed doubts about her Brexit bill.

With her authority draining away by the hour, May on Thursday delayed plans to publish the EU withdrawal bill - her fourth attempt to secure Parliament's backing for her Brexit blueprint.

May became prime minister in July 2016, and her premiership has been consumed by the so-far-unsuccessful attempt to leave the EU.

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