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Jo Johnson, the younger brother of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, has stepped down as a Conservative Party member of parliament, saying he is "torn between family loyalty and the national interest" in a tweet Thursday.
Johnson, unlike his brother supports remaining in the European Union and has called repeatedly for a second Brexit referendum.
He was the MP for the Orpington constituency on the outskirts of London, and Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation.
Jo Johnson's resignation comes after his brother was thwarted in a bid to call an early election in October, just weeks before the UK is set to leave the European Union.
MPs have yet to approve a Brexit deal, and unless they are able to do so before October 31, the UK will drop out of the EU with no deal.
Discontent in the Conservative Party has grown in recent days after Boris decided to expel 21 senior MPs from the party after they backed a bill that would see Brexit delayed until 2020.
The ousted MPs, who included two former chancellors and Winston Churchill's grandson, are popular figures in the party and Boris has reportedly been challenged by leading members of his cabinet to repeal their expulsion.
Jo had previously resigned from his position as a minister in the cabinet of his brother's predecessor Theresa May, where he served as a transport minister.
He had also opposed May's approach to Brexit, which he said at the time that the UK was "barrelling towards an incoherent Brexit."
Johnson, unlike his brother supports remaining in the European Union and has called repeatedly for a second Brexit referendum.
He was the MP for the Orpington constituency on the outskirts of London, and Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation.
Jo Johnson's resignation comes after his brother was thwarted in a bid to call an early election in October, just weeks before the UK is set to leave the European Union.
MPs have yet to approve a Brexit deal, and unless they are able to do so before October 31, the UK will drop out of the EU with no deal.
Discontent in the Conservative Party has grown in recent days after Boris decided to expel 21 senior MPs from the party after they backed a bill that would see Brexit delayed until 2020.
The ousted MPs, who included two former chancellors and Winston Churchill's grandson, are popular figures in the party and Boris has reportedly been challenged by leading members of his cabinet to repeal their expulsion.
Jo had previously resigned from his position as a minister in the cabinet of his brother's predecessor Theresa May, where he served as a transport minister.
He had also opposed May's approach to Brexit, which he said at the time that the UK was "barrelling towards an incoherent Brexit."
