 "Theresa May (Photo: Wikipedia)")
British Prime Minister David Cameron is to resign Wednesday, paving the way for Home Secretary Theresa May to take the reins. May was officially named Conservative Party leader and successor to Cameron "with immediate effect".
May, a party veteran, has been very active in her political career. From banning Zakir Naik in the UK to being the longest serving Home Secretary, her record speaks volumes about her. Business Standard brings you the top 10 things you should know about the PM-to-be Theresa May.
1) Theresa May was appointed as the first female Chairman of the Conservative Party in July 2002. She has been the Member of Parliament since 1997.
2) She was appointed Home Secretary and Minister for Women and Equality by Prime Minister David Cameron in 2010. She became the fourth woman to hold one of the British Great Offices of State, after Margaret Thatcher (Prime Minister), Margaret Beckett (Foreign Secretary) and Jacqui Smith (Home Secretary).
3) She is the longest-serving Home Secretary. She has held the office for a little over six years now.
4) In June 2010, May banned the Indian Muslim preacher Zakir Naik from entering the United Kingdom. Zakir Naik is much in news these days for his inflammatory speeches.
5) Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer, two American bloggers who co-founded the anti-Muslim group Stop Islamization of America, were banned from entering UK on orders issued by Theresa May as their presence would not have been "conducive to the public good".
6) May became only the second Home Secretary to be found in contempt of court, and stood accused of "totally unacceptable and regrettable behaviour" as she overlooked an agreement to free an Algerian from a UK Immigration Detention Centre. May avoided further sanctions including fines or imprisonment as she let the Algerian free.
7) On 7 July 2013, Abu Qatada, a radical cleric arrested in 2002, was deported to Jordan after a decade-long battle, something that several prior Home Secretaries failed to do. The deportation was the result of a treaty negotiated by May in April 2013, under which Jordan agreed to give Qatada a fair trial, and to refrain from torturing him.
8) In May 2012, May became the first high-profile Conservative MPs to pledge personal support for same-sex marriage.
9) In February 2013, BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour described her as Britain's second most powerful woman.
10) After Gordon Brown, she will be the first candidate to become the Prime Minister by acclamation. Brown succeeded Tony Blair who resigned in 2007.
