Boris Johnson has formally stepped down as an MP, parliamentary authorities announced, bringing down the curtain on a tumultuous second stint in the Commons.
Johnson has accepted the post of crown steward and bailiff of the Chiltern Hundreds, a statement said, the slightly convoluted process under which MPs resign.
Rules dating back to 1624 states that MPs can only leave their seats via death, expulsion or disqualification and cannot voluntarily step down. They have to instead accept a paid crown office, which automatically disqualifies them.
Johnson announced on Friday evening he was stepping down as an MP to pre-empt a damning verdict from the Commons privileges committee into whether he misled parliament over lockdown-breaking parties.
Johnson first served as MP for Henley in Oxfordshire between 2001 and 2008, stepping down when he was elected as London mayor. He returned in the west London seat of Uxbridge and South Ruislip at the 2015 election.
More details soon…
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