"AFTER much thought and with deep regret I must inform you that I have made the difficult decision to resign from the government."

These are the words of Salisbury's Member of Parliament John Glen, who this morning stepped down from Boris Johnson's government.

Releasing a letter to the Prime Minister today, July 6, Mr Glen says it has been "a great privilege" to serve as economic secretary to the treasury, but with "a complete lack of confidence" in the PM's leadership, he can no longer commit to the role.

He added that the "country deserves better", following the handling of the appointment of the former Deputy Chief Whip, and the PM's "poor judgement".

Mr Glen will now return to the backbench, and has declared he will not be doing media interviews at this stage.

Here is his letter in full:

"Dear Prime Minister,

"After much thought and with deep regret I must inform you that I have made the difficult decision to resign from the government.

"It has been a great privilege to serve as economic secretary to the treasury under three chancellors, but I can no longer reconcile my commitment to the role and to the financial services sector with the complete lack of confidence I have in your continuing leadership of our country.

"When we met earlier this year, you asked me to commit to carry on working to deliver vital reforms for our world leading financial services.

"Those reforms are now ready to be presented to parliament, and they represent a fundamental reset of the regulatory framework for the industry and consumers.

"Looking back over my tenure, I am proud to have helped steer the City of London through a period of uncertainty following our decision to leave the EU. I also gratefully acknowledge the unstinting hard work and brilliance of my team of civil servants in the Treasury.

"However, recent events concerning the handling of the appointment of the former Deputy Chief Whip, and the poor judgement you have shown, have made it impossible for me to square continued service with my conscience.

"The country deserves better, and I must return to the backbenches to dedicate myself to the service of the people of Salisbury and South Wiltshire.

"With very best regards, John Glen."

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