Shailesh Vara MP: Who is the former Northern Ireland minister and why has he resigned over Theresa May’s Brexit deal?
Shailesh Vara has resigned from his post as the Minister of State at the Northern Ireland Office over the draft Brexit deal.
He announced his resignation saying the EU withdrawal agreement would leave the UK in a “half-way house” outside the EU.
Mr Vara was the first minister to announce he was quitting over the deal on Thursday morning.
Other resignations followed including from senior Cabinet ministers Dominic Raab, who was the Brexit secretary, and Esther McVey, who was the Work and Pensions Secretary.
Who is Shailesh Vara?
Mr Vara, a former lawyer, was appointed Minister of State at the Northern Ireland Office on July 23 2018.
He is the MP for North West Cambridgeshire.
Previously, he worked as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Work and Pensions and at the Ministry of Justice.
Why has he resigned?
Mr Vara said of the deal: "We are going to be locked in for an indefinite period... over which we will have no say, and will effectively be taking rules and regulations from the EU. And if we want to leave the customs arrangement then we can't."
In a tweet displaying his resignation letter, he wrote: "With much sadness and regret I have submitted my letter of resignation as Northern Ireland Minister to the Prime Minister.
"It has been a joy and privilege to serve in the Northern Ireland Office and I will always cherish the fondest memories."
The DUP's deputy leader Nigel Dodds thanked the likes of Dominic Raab and Shailesh Vara for "standing up to the Union."
