Former British prime minister, Baroness Thatcher has said she will make no more public speeches following doctor’s advice that she must cut back her programme immediately.
A statement from her office said she had suffered a number of small strokes over recent months, and doctors have told her they can neither be predicted nor prevented.
A spokesman said: "They have therefore told her to cut back her programme at once and in particular to avoid the undue strains that public speaking place on her."
The statement said that "with great regret" Lady Thatcher had decided to abide by the advice and to cancel all her speaking engagements.
Troy party leader Mr Iain Duncan Smith said he was saddened by the news but fully understood the reasons why she had been advised to withdraw from her public engagements.
Lady Thatcher (76) is resting at her London home.
A few weeks ago, Lady Thatcher cancelled a trip to the Falklands to mark the 20th anniversary of the islands' liberation from Argentina. She said the journey would be too much for her husband.
PA