Outgoing UK PM Rishi Sunak apologised to the country in his farewell speech, after suffering a disastrous election loss.
Speaking outside 10 Downing Street after a terrible night for the UK Conservative party, Sunak confirmed his resignation as prime minister and said: “To the country I would like to say first and foremost, I am sorry.”
“I have given this job my all, but you have sent a clear signal that the government of the United Kingdom must change. And yours is the only judgment that matters.
“I have heard your anger, your disappointment, and I take responsibility for this loss.”
He also said he would step down as Conservative leader once the arrangements for selecting his successor were in place. The party looks set to win just over 121 seats, its worst result in history.
He congratulated Labour party’s Keir Starmer for the landside victory, saying: “In this job his successes will be all our successes and I wish him and his family well. Whatever our disagreements in this campaign he is a decent, public-spirited man who I respect.
“He and his family deserve the very best of our understanding as they make the huge transition to their new lives behind this door,” Sunak added.
By 11:00am BST (British summer time) after almost all constituencies had declared their results, the Labour had won a huge landslide with more than 410 seats. Sunak said the Tories (UK conservative party) now needed to rebuild and take up their “crucial” role in opposition.
He then travelled to Buckingham Palace for his final audience with King Charles III before Starmer formally becomes prime minister.
Speaking about his legacy, Sunak said he strongly believed the country is safer, stronger and more secure than it was 20 months ago, when he became the British PM. Referring to his historic status as the UK’s first British Asian prime minister, Sunak said: “One of the most remarkable things about Britain is just how unremarkable it is that two generations after my grandparents came here with little, I could become prime minister. And that I could watch my two young daughters light Diwali candles on the steps in Downing Street.
“We must hold true to that idea of who we are. That vision of kindness, decency and tolerance that has always been the British way.”
He thanked his family for their support and sacrifices and, after concluding his speech, walked into a waiting car on Downing Street hand-in-hand with his wife, Akshata Murty.
Sunak became Tory leader October 2022 without any contest after the implosion of Liz Truss’s 45-day stint in Downing Street. He has pledged to stay on as an MP for the full term of the current parliament.
