May 'faces leadership contest'

Theresa May is facing the threat of a leadership contest amid mounting anger from Brexiteers over her government's Brexit policy.

Anti-EU Tories attacked a plan agreed by the cabinet at Chequers on Friday, with many believed to be ready to submit the letters needed to trigger a contest.

Eurosceptics are reported to be circulating a draft statement calling for May to go, and some have publicly backed Jacob Rees-Mogg as her replacement.

As the fallout continued, it was also claimed that Boris Johnson, the foreign secretary, had described the proposals agreed at Chequers as "a big turd" and said supporting them amounted to "polishing a turd" - before agreeing to back them.

After marathon talks at her country retreat on Friday, May's divided cabinet agreed on a new "free trade area" where Britain would accept EU rules for goods.

May is likely to face an angry backlash when she addresses the 1922 Committee of Tory MPs today. Brexiteers believe the government's strategy breaks the prime minister's promises to remove the UK from the EU single market and the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice.

The Labour party yesterday said it would vote against the type of Brexit deal being pursued by May, fuelling doubts about the government's ability to get its plans through Parliament.

However, May dismissed talk of a leadership challenge, telling the Sunday Times: "The only challenge that needs to be made now is to the European Union to get serious about this, to come round the table and discuss it with us."

Amid the political storm, a poll has revealed  that a majority of the British public want a general election if Tory plotters oust May and replace her with one of her rivals.

The research sends a strong message to would-be challengers like Boris Johnson, Jeremy Hunt, Sajid Javid and Michael Gove that the public may not stand for having a new prime minister chosen for them by Tory party members.