LONDON: Whoever wins the race to become Conservative Party leader will make an excellent prime minister, outgoing British leader Theresa May said in parliament on Wednesday.

Boris Johnson is the frontrunner to succeed May in the contest with his successor as foreign minister Jeremy Hunt. They will inherit a parliament in which the Conservative Party does not have a majority. May has governed with the support of a small Northern Irish Party.

Asked how she could be sure her successor would be able to command a majority in parliament, May said: "The next leader of the Conservative Party will, I believe, be an excellent prime minister, whichever of the candidates wins."