Boris Johnson has lost control of power in No 10 following a string of resignations from ministers and aides, according to reports.

It follows a string of protests against his leadership.

Boris Johnson has spoken to Tory 1922 Committee chairman Sir Graham Brady and agreed to stand down, with a new Tory leader set to be in place by the party conference in October, a No 10 source said.

Reports suggest No 10 staff have been told the Prime Minister is leaving and his resignation is ready.

The mass exodus of resignations began on Tuesday evening, led by Rishi Sunak and Sajid Javid who both quit their Cabinet posts.

Will there be a general election?

A snap election is not a required process when a Prime Minister resigns, but they may choose to do one.

This is what will happen.

If a Prime Minister resigns while their government is still in power, the government is still elected and therefore the resignation of the standing prime minister triggers a leadership contest, where fellow members of the government will campaign to be the leader of the party.

When the leadership contest is decided, the outgoing prime minister will go and offer their resignation to the Queen and advise that she appoints the new leader of the party as prime minister.

This new prime minister is not then required to hold a general election, or a ‘snap election’, but they often decide to soon after they take over.

This was seen when Theresa May resigned in 2018 and Tony Blair in 2007.

What is a snap election?

A snap election is an election that is called earlier than one is due, i.e. before the Prime Minister’s term is up.

This is usually called when there is an unusual electoral opportunity or a pressing issue to decide upon.

Theresa May called for a snap election when she took over after David Cameron, and Boris Johnson called for one also when he took over from May.

A snap election can only be called by the current Prime Minister, so if one was to be called then it would be by Johnson’s replacement.

Boris Johnson resigns

The Prime Minister’s authority had already been damaged by a confidence vote which saw 41% of his own MPs withdraw their support in June.

The loss of crunch by-elections in Tiverton and Honiton and Wakefield later that month triggered the resignation of party chairman Oliver Dowden, while there is still lingering anger over coronavirus lockdown-busting parties in Downing Street.