David Cameron: I will not serve a third term as PM
PRIME Minister David Cameron said yesterday he will not serve a third term as Prime Minister even if he is re-elected for a second term in May, and tipped Theresa May, George Osborne, or Boris Johnson to succeed him.
Cameron said: “The third term is not something I’m contemplating.”
Downing Street last night declined to comment on what the timeline would be for Cameron standing down, simply insisting that he would “serve a full second term.”
The comments came during an interview with the BBC. There has previously been speculation that Cameron would stand down after an EU referendum, but he has never publicly laid out his plans before now.
In the interview Cameron said: “I feel I’ve got more to bring to this job, I think the job is half done. The economy’s turned round. The deficits down. I want to finish the job.”
However he said: “There definitely comes a time when a fresh pair of eyes, some fresh leadership, would be good.”
Cameron insisted that the Conservative party has “some great people coming up” and used May, Osborne and Johnson as examples of people who could potentially succeed him. Others thought to be in the running, such as Sajid Javid and Jeremy Hunt, did not get a mention from the PM.
Cameron’s party political opponents were left decidely unimpressed by his announcement, which comes just weeks before a General Election that remains too-close-to-call.
Douglas Alexander, Labour’s chair of General Election strategy, said: “The Tories are taking the British public for granted. It is typically arrogant of David Cameron to presume a third Tory term in 2020 before the British public have been given the chance to have their say in this election.”
This was echoed by the Liberal Democrats who said: “It’s incredibly presumptuous of David Cameron to be worrying about a third term as Prime Minister weeks before the General Election.”