Boris Johnson declared “hasta la vista, baby” at the end of his final prime minister’s questions.
The outgoing PM quoted Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Terminator character after what is likely to be his last ever appearance from the House of Commons despatch box.
The famous catchphrase means “see you later” in Spanish.
Tory MPs then gave Johnson a standing ovation as he made his way out of the chamber.
In his final words in the Commons as PM, he said he wanted to “give some words of advice to my successor, whoever he or she may be”.
He said: “Number one: Stay close to the Americans, stick up for the Ukrainians, stick up for freedom and democracy everywhere. Cut taxes and deregulate wherever you can to make this the greatest place to live and invest, which it is.”
In what will be seen as a clear dig at former Chancellor Rishi Sunak, whose resignation helped to bring Johnson down, he went on: “I love the Treasury but remember that if we’d always listened to the Treasury we wouldn’t have built the M25 or the Channel Tunnel.
“Focus on the road ahead, but always remember to check the rear view mirror and remember above all it’s not Twitter that counts.
“It’s the people that sent us here, and yes the last few years have been the greatest privilege of my life and it’s true that I helped to get the biggest Tory majority for 40 years and a huge realignment in UK politics.
“We transformed our democracy and restored our national independence… I’ve helped to get this country through a pandemic and help save another country from barbarism, and frankly that’s enough to be going on with.
“Mission largely accomplished, for now.”
And he added: “I want to thank everybody here. And hasta la vista, baby.”
Labour leader Keir Starmer and Speaker Lindsay Hoyle both wished Johnson well at the beginning of PMQs.
Starmer said: “I would like to take this opportunity to wish him, his wife and his family the best for the future.”
Hoyle said: “Can I say we have been through many dark times within this House and none more so than through the pandemic, and always will be remembered for what this House did and the way you’ve conducted those duties during those dark times.”
But Johnson and Starmer quickly resumed their normal hostilities, with the Labour leader saying he will “miss the delusion” when the PM finally leaves office on September 6.
