New PM will be elected on July 23 and take power the next day after Theresa May’s last PMQs
THE identity of Britain’s new Prime Minister will be declared on Tuesday July 23, The Sun can reveal.
Postal voting in the Tory leadership among its 160,000 members will close at the end of Monday July 22, with counting due to take place overnight.
The contest’s winner – Boris Johnson or Jeremy Hunt – are expected to then see the Queen and enter Downing Street the following day, Wednesday July 24.
Details of the handover of power are yet to be finalised with outgoing PM Theresa May.
She is still to hold formal discussions with the candidates to agree final timings.
But No10 sources say Mrs May is expected to offer to stay on in power for 24 hours after the leadership contest winner is announced to carry out one final Prime Minister’s Questions.
That would mean her successor would not be faced with having to endure their first Commons drilling as one of their very first tasks in the job.
A senior Tory source: “Everything is pretty much in place.
“We’ll have a new leader on Tuesday July 23, and a new PM by the end of Wednesday afternoon, as long as Theresa is amenable to that, and nobody thinks she won’t be.”
Tory chairman Brandon Lewis is expected to announce the timetable for the contest’s end later today.
The Commons must authorise its summer recess dates in a vote tonight.
They have been proposed by the Government to begin when the house rises on the afternoon of Thursday July 25.
But Labour and Tory arch-Remainers may try to force an immediate no confidence vote in the new PM the day they take office, if the winner is Boris.
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The new PM is expected to have a working majority of just three with the DUP’s support as the Tories are on course to lose the upcoming Brecon and Radnorshire by-election.
It is likely to be held by the end of July, sparked by its former Tory MP Chris Davies’ conviction for expenses fraud.
Postal ballots are being despatched to all party members between July 6 and 8.
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