Boris Johnson is May's surprise choice for top role

The surprise job offer comes just 13 days after he pulled out of the Conservative Party leadership race when former ally Michael Gove announced his own intention to stand and left the Vote Leave campaigner with withering support.

Bringing Mr Johnson into the heart of Government into one of the four Great Offices of State will be seen by some as a shrewd move by Mrs May to keep the pro-Brexit members of her party on-side as she negotiates the country’s departure from the EU.

It is also a huge snub to David Cameron, who did not disguise his disappointment that Mr Johnson decided to campaign against him to leave the EU and had never given the high profile Tory a position as a secretary of state.

George Osborne has been replaced as Chancellor by Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond. Former Energy Secretary Amber Rudd has been appointed Home Secretary, taking up Mrs May’s former position.

Arch-Brexiter and Yorkshire MP David Davis has also been brought back into the centre of Government with a promotion to new position as Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union.

The representative for Haltemprice and Howden, who was Europe Minister between 1994 and 1997 and challenged Mr Cameron to the Conservative Party leadership in 2005, has been a long-standing opponent of the European Union.

Another Eurosceptic brought into the fold is Dr Liam Fox, who exited the Tory leadership race after the first round last week.

He has been appointed into the newly created position, Secretary of State for International Trade.

Lib Dem leader Tim Farron said Boris Johnson’s first task should be to apologise to the foreign leaders he has offended.

While the former mayor of London’s ability to speak fluent French and German and pan-European heritage may be seen as an advantage as he deals with Britain’s global fortunes post-Brexit, his comments during the referendum landed him in hot-water.

His remark that President Barack Obama’s Kenyan heritage could mean he has an ancestral dislike for the British empire caused a storm ahead of his final state visit to the UK in April.

AFTER six years as Chancellor George Osborne has been replaced by former Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond.

Theresa May appears to have made a clean break with Mr Cameron’s closest ally who rolled out a series of austerity Budgets and made pledge after pledge to reduce the deficit by 2020.

That promise was dropped earlier this month, and the humiliating admission followed climbdowns over child tax credit cuts and personal independent payments.

New Chancellor Mr Hammond is a long-time friend of Mrs May and is believed to have a devout belief in economic stability and prudent public finances.