PRITI PATEL has resigned following revelations that she had secret meetings with Israeli politicians. But what is Prexit?
What is Prexit?Prexit refers to Priti Patel’s resignation from the Conservative front bench.
The International Development Secretary was forced to cut short her official visit to Africa and has resigned from her role after meeting with Theresa May today.
She apologised to the Prime Minister on Monday after failing to disclose a series of 12 meetings with senior Israeli figures during a family holiday in the country in August.
But it then emerged that she held two additional meetings, one in the UK and one in the US, following her return from vacation.
In a two-page resignation letter to the Prime Minister, Ms Patel conceded that her actions “fell below high standards expected of Secretary of State”.
Mrs May said the Witham MP had made the right decision by resigning, adding: “You have helped to ensure that, as the UK leaves the EU, we will build a truly Global Britain.”
Former Ukip leader Nigel Farage has also responded to Ms Patel’s resignation.
He tweeted: “Resignation by @patel4witham is very sad. She’s a good woman and a leading Brexiteer in the Cabinet.”
Who is Priti Patel?Ms Patel was appointed to the cabinet by the Prime Minister shortly after the EU referendum.
The fervent Brexit campaigner was elected as MP for Witham in Essex in 2010 and was quickly singled out as a rising star within the Tory Party.
The 45-year old has been critical of the UK’s open immigration policy and once claimed the European Union is ”undemocratic and interferes too much in our daily lives"
Ms Patel gained her education from Keele and Essex universities and started work in Conservative Central Office in 1997.