Boris Johnson, British Prime Minister, on the verge of resigning

Boris Johnson is due to resign on Thursday following a rebellion within his Conservative party and is expected to address the nation in the coming hours.

"The Prime Minister will make a statement to the country today," a Downing Street spokesperson told CNN.

Johnson was engulfed in a series of scandals that forced even his most loyal supporters to abandon him.

More than 50 lawmakers have resigned from the government since Tuesday, angered by the sloppy handling of the resignation by Johnson's former deputy chief whip, Chris Pincher, who was accused of groping two men last week.

Johnson initially tried to ride out the crisis - despite an unprecedented flight from mid-level government ministers, a beating at Prime Minister's Questions and a murderous appearance before a committee of senior lawmakers in Parliament. On Wednesday, he still insisted that he was not going to resign.

But Johnson finally seemed to relent on Thursday after some of his most loyal allies told him it was game over.

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Opposition Labor Party leader Keir Starmer said it was "good news for the country" that Johnson had decided to quit, adding that "it should have happened a long time ago".< /p>

“He has always been unfit to perform his duties. He has been responsible for industry-wide lies, scandals and fraud,” Starmer said on Twitter.

The Leader of the Opposition also had scathing words for the Conservatives. “They have been in power for 12 years. The damage they have caused is profound. Twelve years of economic stagnation. Twelve years of declining public services. Twelve years of empty promises,” Starmer said.

"That's enough. We don't need to change the Tories at the top - we need a real change of government. We need a fresh start for Britain."

(CNN)