UK's Brexit minister resigns citing differences with PM May

Britain's Brexit minister David Davis today resigned unexpectedly, citing serious policy differences with Prime Minister Theresa May's exit plan from the European Union, in a major blow to her plans to win over Eurosceptic MPs to her proposed Brexit vision.

The UK is due to leave the 28-member EU on March 29, 2019, but the two sides have yet to agree how trade will work between them afterwards.

Davis, the Secretary of State for Exiting the EU said he remained "unpersuaded" about the government's negotiating position, just days after May had rallied her Cabinet to a crucial away day at her country retreat, Chequers, to thrash out a "collective" position on the issue.

Seeking to quickly douse the crisis, May appointed 44-year-old eurosceptic junior minister for housing Dominic Raab to be Britain's new Brexit minister.

In his resignation letter, Davis said it looked "less and less likely" the Conservative party would deliver on the Brexit result and the commitment to leave the EU Customs Union and Single Market dubbed by many as a "soft" Brexit.

"The general direction of policy will leave us in at best a weak negotiating position, and possibly an inescapable one," Davis wrote.

"I am also unpersuaded that our negotiating approach will not just lead to further demands for concession," he said in the letter addressed to May.

He ended the letter by saying that May needs "an enthusiastic believer in your approach, and not merely a reluctant conscript".

While he accused May of "giving away too much, too easily" to negotiators in Brussels, Davis insisted that he still believes she is the best person for the job of delivering Brexit.

"I like Theresa May, I think she's a good Prime Minister I won't be encouraging people to do that [replace her]. I think it's the wrong thing to do," he said, when asked if he had plans to back a growing rebellion within the Conservative party.

Davis' exit has led to intense activity among hard Brexiteer Tory MPs already unhappy with May's Brexit strategy, to raise rallying cries for a replacement.

In her own letter, May thanked Davis for his service, but said: "I do not agree with your characterisation of the policy we agreed at Cabinet on Friday."