Cameron also urged for unity among his top ministers in the Conservative Party.
Prime Minister David Cameron is laying the groundwork for his successor to trigger Britain's departure from the European Union and on Monday urged unity among his top ministers, his spokeswoman said.
Cameron said on Friday he would resign by October after Britons ignored his advice and voted to leave the 28-member bloc in last week's referendum, unleashing a leadership battle in his ruling Conservatives.
His spokeswoman said the prime minister had set up a unit of public servants to help a future leader not only negotiate the departure of Britain from the EU, but also to work out the options for the country's future outside it.
The unit would "make sure we have done the groundwork ready for a new prime minister. So it is about preparing advice on the whole range of issues that will need to be looked at, things like transitional issues."
She said: "It is the pre-thinking. It is not the decision-making because it is right that that decision is taken by the prime minister in a new government," adding that Oliver Letwin, a lawmaker and old friend of Cameron's, would be involved with the unit.
At a meeting of his cabinet, Cameron urged his top ministers to work together on its regular business, which some critics say has been all but suspended during months of campaigning for the EU referendum.
Cameron's resignation has triggered a leadership contest in the Conservative Party, with all eyes on former London mayor Boris Johnson as the favourite to succeed him. Other members of the cabinet may stand against Johnson.
The spokeswoman declined to comment on the leadership battle and said there had been no discussion at the cabinet meeting, which did not include Johnson, about the possibility of an early parliamentary election. Instead, the prime minister had urged unity both in government and in the country.
"The government now needs to focus on doing all it can to prepare for a negotiation for us to leave the European Union ... and also to get on with a whole range of business that government has," she said.
The EU referendum has also prompted Scottish leader Nicola Sturgeon to raise the prospect of a second independence vote for her country.
"The prime minister's view has not changed," Cameron's spokeswoman said. "There was a legal, fair and decisive referendum nearly 2 years ago. The reasons for Scotland to be in the UK are as strong now as they were 18 months ago."
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