13.09.16
David Cameron stands down as Oxfordshire MP
Former prime minister David Cameron’s parliamentary career is over after he announced his resignation as an MP.
Cameron resigned as prime minister after the referendum on Britain’s membership of the European Union, which he had announced, led to a vote to leave.
He said he will now also stand down as MP for Witney in Oxfordshire with immediate effect, triggering a by-election.
Cameron said: “As a former PM it’s very difficult to sit as a backbencher and not be an enormous diversion and distraction from what the government is doing.
“I don’t want to be that distraction.”
As an MP, Cameron wrote to Oxfordshire County Council asking them to 'look again' at extensive spending cuts.
He was also accused of breaching the ministerial code after offering the council's leader access to civil service advisers.
Cameron denied his resignation from politics was triggered by the new prime minister Theresa May’s announcement that she will lift the ban on new grammar schools, something Cameron opposed.
Instead, he said the decision was “nothing to do with any one individual issue” and May had “got off to a great start” as prime minister.
May said: “I was proud to serve in David Cameron’s government and under his leadership we achieved great things. Not just stabilising the economy but also making great strides in delivering serious social reform.
“His commitment to leading a one-nation government is one that I will continue. I thank him for everything he has done for the Conservative party and the country and I wish him and his family well for the future.”
(Image c. Kirsty Wigglesworth from AP/Press Association Images)
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