Justin Trudeau resigns as leader of Canada's governing party after nearly a decade as prime minister.
Trudeau says in a news conference in Ottawa that he will stay on as PM until a new Liberal Party leader is chosen, reports the BBC.
"This country deserves a real choice" at the next election, he says, announcing that parliament will be prorogued until 24 March
Trudeau had been under growing pressure from within his party and elsewhere to step down.
However, Trudeau's resignation marks the end of an era for Canadian politics.
As prime minister, he came to power in 2015, winning a majority government for the Liberals after years in the political wilderness, with the party falling behind both the Conservatives and the left-leaning New Democratic Party in Parliament.
Trudeau, the son of another Liberal prime minister, Pierre Trudeau, saved the party and then rebuilt it in his image. Now, the Liberals will need another major resuscitation if they hope to overcome dismal public polling in the looming federal election.
