Britain's new prime minister to be announced

Downing Street - Image credit: PA

Boris Johnson or Jeremy Hunt will be unveiled as the new leader of the Conservatives this morning, as the party faces a bitter battle over a no-deal Brexit.

The man chosen by the party's members to succeed Theresa May as prime minister will be announced around 11.45am at the QE2 conference centre in London.

The winner will officially enter Number 10 on Wednesday afternoon, following Theresa May's final Prime Minister's Questions session.

Johnson is widely expected to seize the Tory crown, but he will immediately face trouble from his own backbenches over his vow to deliver Brexit with or without a deal by 31 October.

Justice Secretary David Gauke, who has promised to quit on Wednesday if Johnson wins, warned the Tory frontrunner that his strategy for leaving the EU would see the party shed votes to the Liberal Democrats under their new leader Jo Swinson.

The Cabinet minister told The Times Johnson's strategy was "going to draw millions of traditional Conservative voters away from us".

And he warned: "If we were to narrow our support to purely being those in favour of a no-deal Brexit I think we would be significantly out of touch with a lot of people who have traditionally voted Conservative — those who live in London, the home counties, and various other relatively affluent parts of the country.

"It is important the Conservative Party appeals to voters in the centre ground.

“It’s a position that would play into the hands of the Liberal Democrats."

Meanwhile International Development Secretary Rory Stewart, who has also said he could not serve under Johnson, insisted the next prime minister would not have the numbers needed to get a no-deal Brexit through the Commons.

Speaking at an event hosted by the i newspaper, Stewart pointed to the UK Government's slim Commons majority saying: "There is a majority of two, and I have at least three friends."

He added: "There are at least five of us leaving the Cabinet, and there are many others too, who are against a no-deal Brexit and he has a majority of two."

Chancellor Philip Hammond has already made it clear that will not serve under a prime minister contemplating a no-deal Brexit, while Foreign Office minister Sir Alan Duncan, who worked for Johnson when he was foreign secretary, quit on Monday.

Should Johnson win, The Telegraph reports that he will use his victory speech to focus on the three themes of "delivering Brexit, bringing the Tory Party together and seeing off the threat of Jeremy Corbyn".