Michael Howard: 'We have begun the process of rebuilding'

This is an edited transcript of Michael Howard's speech following his defeat yesterday morning

"...I am very sad we didn't do better, sad for our many candidates who came within a whisker of victory, sad for all our supporters who worked so hard and sad for the millions of voters who put their trust in us.

"But today the Conservative Party can hold its head up high. We have begun the process of rebuilding our party.

"...Now, as many of you know, as I have mentioned more than once on this campaign, I am 63 years old. At the time of the next election in four or five years' time I will be 67 or 68 and I believe that's simply too old to lead a party into government.

"So, as I can't fight the next election as leader of our party, I believe it's better to stand aside sooner rather than later so the party can choose someone who can. I want to avoid the uncertainty of prolonged debate about the leadership.

"I want the next Conservative leader to have much more time than I had to prepare our party for government.

"If we have achieved this much in just 18 months, imagine what we can achieve in the next four or five years.

"I have said many times since I became leader, during this election campaign, that accountability matters.

"I have said that if people don't deliver they go and for me delivering meant winning the election. I didn't do that. I didn't do that despite my best efforts. And I want to do now what is best for my party and above all for my country.

"It is widely known that there is a good deal of dissatisfaction with the existing rules for choosing the leader of the party so I intend to stay as leader until the party has had the opportunity to consider whether it wishes those rules to be changed and if so how they should be changed. When that process is complete I shall resign as leader."