Leading Brexit campaigner Farage quits as UKIP leader

London : Leading Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage on Monday stepped down as leader of the UK Independence Party as the shockwaves from Britain's decision to quit the EU continued to rock the political order.

"I have decided to stand aside as leader of UKIP," he told a London press conference. "The victory for the 'Leave' side in the referendum means that my political ambition has been achieved."

The 52-year-old vowed watch Britain's renegotiation process with the EU "like a hawk" as he continued to serve as an MEP in Brussels.

"If there is too much backsliding... then UKIP's best days may be yet to come," he said.

Prime Minister David Cameron resigned after the referendum result, sparking a leadership contest in his ruling Conservative party. Farage's decision to give up his party's leadership comes just days after fellow Brexit campaign leader, flamboyant former London mayor Boris Johnson, pulled out of the race to succeed Cameron.

Farage said whoever was next chosen to lead the country should be a "Brexit prime minister".

He also offered his services to "other independence movements springing up in other parts of the European Union".

Finance minister George Osborne earlier Monday said he would seek to slash corporation tax over fears of a business exodus following the referendum.

Osborne could cut Britain's levy on company profits to under 15 percent, the Treasury said Monday, confirming a weekend report in the Financial Times newspaper.

The new target, which has no timetable, would give Britain the lowest rates of any major economy, putting it closer to the 12.5 percent rate in neighbouring EU member Ireland.

"We must focus on the horizon and the journey ahead and make the most of the hand we've been dealt," Osborne, who had campaigned with Cameron for Britain to stay in EU, told the FT.