British PM Liz Truss quits after 45 days of struggle in power

Liz Truss, the embattled prime minister of Britain, on Thursday (20) resigned after 45 days in power, marking it the shortest term for a British premier.

The move came after her economic programme sent shockwaves through the markets and divided her ruling Conservative Party just six weeks after she was appointed over Rishi Sunak to succeed Boris Johnson.

"Given the situation, I cannot carry out the mandate for which I was elected...I will remain as Prime Minister until a successor has been chosen," Truss told reporters.

Her premiership witnessed severe hardships from the very beginning after she took charge on September 6 after weeks of a leadership contest against former finance minister Rishi Sunak.

Excluding 10 days of mourning for the late Queen Elizabeth II, the outgoing prime minister had only a week before her political programme imploded, leading to the sacking of her finance minister Kwasi Kwarteng.

Matters took a turn for the worse on Wednesday (19) when another top member of her government, Suella Braverman, stepped down as the home secretary saying she had concerns about the direction of the Truss-led government.

Truss, who has been the third woman prime minister of the UK after Margaret Thatcher, and Theresa May, is the fourth prime minister the country has seen since its Brexit referendum of 2016.