Boris Johnson wins Tory contest to become UK prime minister

Boris Johnson was crowned leader of the Conservative party on Tuesday and is set to become prime minister, facing perhaps the most daunting challenge of any British politician in peacetime.

Mr Johnson beat Jeremy Hunt in the race to succeed Theresa May as head of the Tory party, securing 92,153 votes to the foreign secretary’s 46,656.

The 2:1 margin of victory gives Mr Johnson a strong mandate to pursue his own version of Brexit in the coming weeks.