Theresa May is facing pressure to call a general election after it was confirmed that tomorrow she will succeed David Cameron as Prime Minister.

Labour, the Liberal Democrats and a number of Conservative MPs all called for Mrs May to go to the country to legitimise the premiership following her coronation.

But last night she hinted that she had no plans call a snap poll, telling Tory MPs that under her leadership the party would win a larger majority at Westminster in 2020.

Read more: Theresa May to be Prime Minister by Wednesday evening

In her first public statement as Prime Minister-in-waiting, Mrs May also pledged to build a "better Britain" by giving people more control over their own lives.

But First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she expected “early engagement” with the new Tory leader over the UK’s exit from the European Union.

Mrs May became the only candidate in the Conservative leadership race at lunchtime yesterday after her controversial rival Andrea Leadsom sensationally quit.

Mrs Leadsom pulled out just 48 hours after she appeared to suggest she would be a better Prime Minister because she has children.

Read more: Tory MPs desperate not to have a general election

In an interview with the Times, Mrs Leadsom said: "Genuinely I feel that being a mum means you have a very real stake in the future of our country, a tangible stake."

She said that Mrs May, who has spoken of being unable to have children, "possibly has nieces, nephews... but I have children who are going to have children who will directly be a part of what happens next".

Announcing her decision, Mrs Leadsom said that a nine-week leadership campaign was "undesirable" in the wake of the Brexit vote.

The UK needed a new Prime Minister "as soon as possible", she said.

Within hours it was confirmed that the leadership race would not be re-opened and Mrs May was declared the victor.

Mr Cameron will stand down tomorrow afternoon, meaning that the new Prime Minister will be in place by the evening.

Read more: Fierce backlash brings rapid end to Andrea Leadsom's leadership bid

Mrs May, who campaigned to stay in the EU, tried to appeal to those who voted to leave yesterday.

She said: “Brexit means Brexit, and we are going to make a success of it”.

She also promised a “new, positive vision for the future of our country, a vision of a country that works not for the privileged few, but .. for every one of us... we’re going to give people more control over their lives and that’s how, together, we will build a better Britain.”

Ms Sturgeon said that it was vital that Scotland was consulted over the EU exit.

She added: “But that involvement does not mean we accept that Scotland should leave the EU. On the contrary, I have made clear that I intend to pursue every possible avenue to secure Scotland’s continued place in Europe and in the world’s biggest single market, and that all options must be on the table in order to achieve that."

Tim Farron, the Lib Dem leader, said that the choice of new Prime Minister was a Tory “stitch up”as he accused the Conservatives of plunging the UK into chaos over Brexit.

“It is simply inconceivable that Theresa May should be crowned Prime Minister without even having won an election in her own party, let alone the country," he said.

"There must be an election.”

Jon Trickett, Labour’s election coordinator and a key ally of Jeremy Corbyn, said: "It now looks likely that we are about to have the coronation of a new Conservative Prime Minister.

“It is crucial, given the instability caused by the Brexit vote, that the country has a democratically elected Prime Minister."

He announced that he was putting his party on a “general election footing”.

Labour has been plunged into its own leadership contest following Angela Eagle’s decision to challenge Mr Corbyn’s position at the weekend.

Critics pointed to Mrs May’s own claims about Gordon Brown.

When he succeeded Tony Blair as Prime Minister , she wrote on the ConservativeHome website: "Whenever Gordon Brown chooses to call a general election, we will be ready for him. He has no democratic mandate.”

Mrs May will be only the second ever female Prime Minister, after Margaret Thatcher, who took up the job in 1979.

Last week she was described by Tory grandee Ken Clarke as a “bloody difficult woman”.

As Home Secretary she has spent six years in a job that has finished off many political careers.

Although she supported Remain, she kept a low profile during the referendum.

She new begins the job of putting together a team of both Remainers and Brexiters.

Her campaign chief, the pro-Leave Chris Grayling, is tipped for a key position, as is the high-profile Brexit campaigner Michael Gove, who came third in the leadership contest.

Failed leadership rival Liam Fox, the former defence secretary, is also expected to be in the frame for a job.

David Mundell's post as Scottish Secretary is thought to be safe.

Over the weekend Mrs May pledged to keep Scotland in the United Kingdom if she became Prime Minister

She promised that defending the Union would be a "major priority" for her government.

Ms Sturgeon has attacked Mrs May's refusal to guarantee that EU nationals already in the UK can stay after a Brexit.