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Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire has resigned from his post for health reasons.

The 50-year-old MP said he requires surgery for a "small lesion" on his lung but added that he intends to return to politics after treatment.

He is a close ally of Prime Minister Theresa May, having served under her for five years at the Home Office.

The former lawyer was appointed secretary of state for Northern Ireland on 14 July 2016.

He has had the unenviable job of leading government efforts to restore the devolved Northern Ireland executive after power sharing collapsed in January 2017.

Mr Brokenshire has been an MP since 2005, and has represented Old Bexley and Sidcup since 2010.

He was subsequently re-elected in 2015 and again in 2017 with more than 60% of the vote.

He has campaigned on issues such as crime, asylum and immigration, and a large proportion of his career has been spent at the Home Office.

He served as minister for immigration and security at the Home Office from 2014 to 2015, and as minister for immigration from May 2015 until July 2016.

Before entering Parliament, he practised law for 13 years at a large international firm, advising a range of companies and businesses on company law, mergers and acquisitions and corporate finance transactions.

Before studying law at the University of Exeter, he was educated at Davenant Foundation Grammar School, Loughton, Essex, and Cambridge Centre for Sixth Form Studies.

He is married with three children and lives in Bexley, south-east London.

His constituency website says his hobbies are cricket, jogging, listening to music and hill walking - particularly in the Highlands of Scotland.