Boris Johnson: Portsmouth politicians welcome Prime Minister's resignation

Simon Bosher, who expressed his disapproval of Mr Johnson's leadership publicly after suffering heavy losses in the May election, said he would support Portsmouth North MP Penny Mordaunt as his successor.

'It was the right decision and it's been coming for a while now,' Cllr Bosher said. 'I think I made my thoughts pretty clear after the May election.

'This probably should've happened a little earlier but he's finally resigned and we can now look forward to seeing who puts themselves forward to be the next leader.

'Penny Mordaunt would make an excellent leader and she has shown that she has the skills to be a fantastic prime minister.'

Yesterday several Portsmouth residents told The News that a general election was needed for a fresh start in Westminster – although some still expressed strong support for Mr Johnson.

Mr Johnson announced his resignation on Thursday after facing a mass revolt from his ministers with dozens resigning in the last week.

Portsmouth City Council's Lib Dem leader Gerald Vernon-Jackson said his decision to resign was 'absolutely right' but added that Mr Johnson should not be allowed to carry on in any 'caretaker' capacity until his successor is chosen.

'The problem has not been about individual policies, which is often the case in these things, but about the person and the way they operate,' he said.

'For the first time ever, there's been a whiff of corruption around and that's really not normal for British politics. They have been in office to further their own interests and those of their friends - that's incredibly worrying.

'That makes him absolutely unsuitable to carry on until October. He has a deputy prime minister who should step in until his replacement is chosen.'

These concerns have also been raised by a number of high profile figures, including fellow former prime minister Sir John Major who said either Mr Johnson's deputy, Dominic Raab, should take over as a caretaker until the autumn, or the process of appointing a successor should be fast-tracked.