Theresa May faces fresh leadership challenge as grassroots Tories ‘force emergency summit in bid to oust her’

Theresa May is facing a fresh leadership challenge after an emergency summit was forced by grassroots Tories on whether to demand that she should step down, it has been reported. 

A meeting of 800 constituency chairmen and women and senior activists is expected to take place in June after enough of them signed a petition to hold an emergency general meeting.

According to The Sun, they will vote on whether to demand the Prime Minister’s resignation for failing to deliver Brexit in a move that is said to be unprecedented in the party’s 185-year history.

Although non-binding, losing the vote would put huge pressure on Mrs May to step down. 

After months of internal rancour over Britain’s departure from the EU, which the Prime Minister failed to deliver by the original March 29 deadline, Conservative figures are concerned the party is heading for a mauling at this week’s local elections.

The European elections later in May – which are being held as a result of the Brexit delay – are also expected to go badly for the party amid the threat from Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party.

Talks between senior Tory minsters and Labour figures are continuing to break the Commons impasse over Brexit.

However, Mrs May’s handling of Brexit, along with discussions with Labour, has enraged Tory activists and translated into problems for the party on the doorstep.

Seventy constituency leaders reportedly signed the petition to demand an EGM, passing a 10% threshold of 65.

Mrs May was reportedly made aware of the news personally on Monday night by the head of the National Conservative Convention Andrew Sharpe, who is also a deputy party chairman.

The petition’s organiser, London East Conservatives chairwoman Dinah Glover, told The Sun: “Unfortunately, the Prime Minister is no longer the solution to the problem, but is actually the block to Brexit.”

The petition is said to state that the signatories “no longer feel that Mrs May is the right person to continue as Prime Minister to lead us forward in the negotiations”.

“We therefore with great reluctance ask that she considers her position and resigns,” it adds.

Mrs May has already survived an internal attempt to oust her when backbenchers on the party’s 1922 Committee launched a revolt in December.

Under party rules, disgruntled MPs have to wait 12 months from a failed bid to try again in a fresh vote.

On Tuesday, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt warned against any attempt to get rid of Mrs May before a Brexit deal is passed by MPs.

He told the Daily Telegraph: “The process of a Tory leadership election would inevitably involve candidates setting out their red lines which might itself mean that finding a compromise to get Brexit over the line becomes harder.”

Mrs May has pledged to step down if and when her Brexit deal clears the Commons.