Williamson named Defence Secretary after Fallon falls on sword

Conservative MP Gavin Williamson was on Thursday named as the UK’s new Secretary of State for Defence following the resignation of Sir Michael Fallon a day earlier.

Fallon departed his role as the senior figure in the armed forces as he became the most significant ministerial scalp in the fallout from the sexual harassment scandal at Westminster.

Theresa May did not waste any time in replacing Fallon, who said in a resignation letter that his conduct had “fallen short” of what was expected of his position.

South Staffordshire MP Williamson has been the Tory's chief whip since 2010.

According to a report in the Daily Mail, Williamson himself encouraged May to "pull the plug” on Fallon by warning there could be more Fallon accusations to come.

Williamson, however, was not seen among the favourites to get the defence brief, with Bournemouth East MP Tobias Ellwood and former defence minister Penny Mordaunt given shortest odds by bookmaker Ladbrokes on Thursday morning.

The Telegraph meanwhile was citing reports that May was poised appoint Mordaunt as the first female defence secretary in history.