Jess Phillips has dropped out of the race to become the next leader of the British Labour party.
The Birmingham Yardley MP made the announcement in a social statement to her supporters.
Her withdrawal leaves four candidates in the running to succeed Jeremy Corbyn - Keir Starmer, Rebecca Long-Bailey, Lisa Nandy and Emily Thornberry.
Ms Phillips, who announced her candidacy earlier this month, said: "The Labour will need to select a candidate that can unite all parts of our movement - the union movement, the members, the elected representatives.
"I have to be honest with myself - as I said I always would be throughout this campaign - that this time that person isn't me."
Sending a message to everyone who has backed me, to all who have joined in and joined up - I promise that your voices will still be heard. We all have a role to play in changing our party and our country. pic.twitter.com/xianaiGpPr
— Jess Phillips MP (@jessphillips) January 21, 2020
Opinion polls have shown Keir Starmer as the current favourite in the lengthy Labour leadership race.
A recent YouGov poll of 1,005 party members showed him most likely to face Ms Long-Bailey - an ally of the outgoing leader - in a final round of voting.
Members of the party will be balloted over the coming months, with the winner to be announced in early April.
The party's leadership contest was triggered after Jeremy Corbyn announced he would stand down following Labour's disastrous performance in the UK general election last month.
