After withdrawing from the UK PM race, Penny Mordaunt showed full support to Rishi Sunak as a symbol of party unity. In her withdrawal speech, she talked about the ultimate aim of all the members of the party who are the stakeholder of it. She also mentioned the tough time the UK's economy is going through and said that the right leadership is the need of the hour rather than another 2-3 days being spent on contesting the election for the next UK PM. By referring to the 1922 election process, the ex-chancellor declared her full support to Rishi Sunak as the next UK Prime Minister.
Below is the full text of the withdrawal speech of Penny Mordaunt who was by the most declared backers among Tory MPs:
"Our Party is our membership. Whether we are elected representatives, activists, fundraisers, or supporters. We all have a stake in who our leader is.
"These are unprecedented times. Despite the compressed timetable for the leadership contest, it is clear that colleagues feel we need certainty today. They have taken this decision in good faith for the good of the country.
"Members should know that this proposition has been fairly and thoroughly tested by the agreed 1922 process.
"As a result, we have now chosen our next Prime Minister. This decision is a historic one and shows, once again, the diversity and talent of our party. Rishi has my full support.
"I am proud of the campaign we ran and grateful to all those, across all sides of our party, who gave me their backing. We all owe it to the country, to each other, and to Rishi to unite and work together for the good of the nation. There is much work to be done."
It is worth noting that after the withdrawal of Borris Johnson from the UK PM race, there was pressure on Penny Mordaunt to step down from the race. The former UK PM Borris Johnson announced his unprecedented back out from the UK PM race a day ago. In a public announcement, he said that he has enough support to stand in the election, but this is not the right time to do so.
