The British education minister Anne Milton has resigned.
She made the announcement about an hour before the new leader of the Conservative Party is set to be confirmed.
Boris Johnson is the frontrunner - he is up against Jeremy Hunt.
Ms Milton sais she has “grave concerns about leaving the EU without a deal”.
In her resignation letter, Guildford MP Ms Milton said: “It is with much regret that I am resigning from the Government today. It has been an honour to serve on the Conservative frontbench since 2006. and to have held several positions in Government since 2010.”
Having abstained in the vote last week, today I have resigned from the Government. It has been an honour to serve on the Conservative frontbenches, my thanks to everyone I have had the pleasure of working alongside. pic.twitter.com/ELo1Y30YqC
— Rt Hon Anne Milton (@AnneMilton) July 23, 2019
She continued: “I have always believed that our departure from the European Union should be centred around future cooperation, and I had sincerely hoped we would have been able to leave the EU in March with a deal in place. I regret very much that this was not possible.
“However, I have grave concerns about leaving the EU without a deal, and so I feel it is time for me to return to the backbenches. It is important to me to be free to do what I feel is right for the country and my constituents.
“This has not been an easy to decision to make but I believe strongly that Parliament should continue to play a central role in approving a deal, and that we must leave the EU in a responsible manner.”