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Theresa May calls EMERGENCY meeting for 3pm as PM’s future hangs by thread over Brexit

The Prime Minister is said to have summoned key members of her Cabinet along with leading Tory rebel..

The Prime Minister is said to have summoned key members of her Cabinet along with leading Tory rebels to her official residence at Chequers house near Aylesbury.

May is reportedly set to make one last bid to thrash out an agreement within her warring party to finally push Britain into Brexit.

Just five days remain unless no agreement is solved – with Britain still set to crash out without a deal on March 29.

It means the PM has just 120 hours to go to finally push a meaningful vote on her deal – or ANY deal – through the House of Commons.

Speculation is mounting that May is preparing to fall on her sword and agree to quit to ensure the success of the Withdrawal Agreement.

Various reports suggest environment secretary Michel Gove or her de-facto deputy David Lidington are being groomed to be the next Prime Minister.

Theresa May

CRUNCH TIME: Theresa May is ready to thrash out talks at Chequers (Pic: PA)

“The end is nigh, she will be gone in ten days”

Minister

Gove and Lidington have both reportedly arrived at Chequers for talks which are set to begin at 3pm.

Other key members of the fractured Conservative Party in attendance include Brexit secretary Stephen Barclay, chief whip Julian Smith and chairman Brandon Lewis.

And sitting on the other side of the table is a whose-who of Mays enemies within the Tories.

Brexiteer rebels Boris Johnson, Dominic Raab, Damian Green and Iain Duncan Smith are reportedly heading to Chequers.

David Davis is also reportedly due to attend, along with Jacob Rees-Mogg, chief of the powerful Brexiteer cabal the European Research Group.

"The end is nigh, she will be gone in ten days," said one minister.

David Lidington

QUIET ONE: David Lidington has suddenly been tipped for leadership (Pic: GETTY) Related Articles

Michael Gove

HEIR APPARENT: Michael Gove helped Theresa May win leadership by scuppering Boris Johnson (Pic: GETTY)

Britain means bitterly divided over exiting the European Union – despite the vote in June, 2016, finishing 52% to 48%.

May has been heavily criticised for her handling of Brexit, seemingly refusing to budge on her Withdrawal Agreement deal she thrashed out with the EU.

Brexiteers have criticised the agreement for leaving the UK too closely tied to the EU, while others have said it fails to protect the rights of EU citizens living in the UK

Around one million people marched through London yesterday to call for a second vote.

And elsewhere, Brexiteer-in-chief Nigel Farage also gathered around two hundred of his supporters in Linby during the "March to Leave".

MPs have reportedly decided she has become a “toxic and erratic” figure whose judgement has “gone haywire”.

It came after a controversial speech in which May outright blamed the Commons for not backing her deal – telling the public “I am on your side”.

May's number two Lidington has said he has no desire to take over as Prime Minister.

He told reporters in his Aylesbury constituency: "I don't think that I've any wish to take over from the PM (who) I think is doing a fantastic job.

"I tell you this: one thing that working closely with the Prime Minister does is cure you completely of any lingering shred of ambition to want to do that task.

"I have absolute admiration for the way she is going about it."

Lidington also said he was "not attracted by" nor had time for plotting.

"I've learnt to take rumours in the papers with a bit of a pinch of salt over the years."

People's Vote

FIGHTING FOR EU: People's Vote protestors were out in force yesterday in London (Pic: REUTERS)

Conservative former leader IDS said the last week in politics has been "as close to a national humiliation as I think I've seen".

He lashed out at Cabinet ministers briefing against the Prime Minister in the newspapers, telling BBC One's Andrew Marr Show: "I think that's appalling, I think they should be censured and some of them should be sacked.

"And the idea of a cabal, a cabal that never wanted to leave the European Union, turning out to decide what should happen over our future would be unacceptable to my colleagues."

Mr Duncan Smith added: "If there is to be a leadership change that leadership change has to be done through the correct process with the membership out there deciding who will be their leader – not some ghastly five or six man and woman cabal that actually decides things internally."

Boris Johnson

PM IN WAITING?: Boris Johnson has reportedly been quietly building support for months (Pic: GETTY)

Philip Hammond has accused MPs allegedly trying to oust the Prime Minister of being "self-indulgent", amid reports that his Cabinet colleagues are plotting a "coup" to get rid of her.

The Chancellor said replacing Theresa May would not "solve the problem", despite heavy criticism of her handling of the Brexit process and calls from members of her party to stand aside.

"To be talking about changing the players on the board frankly is self-indulgent at this time," Mr Hammond told Sky News's Sophy Ridge On Sunday.

He denied reports that he wanted Mrs May's de facto deputy David Lidington to be installed as a caretaker prime minister, but refused to be drawn on whether his colleagues had approached him asking him to make an intervention.

Theresa and Philip May

DIVINE INTERVENTION: Theresa May and her husband Philip go to church on Sunday (Pic: GETTY)

Mrs May's former policy adviser MP George Freeman said it was "all over for the PM", tweeting: "She's done her best. But across the country you can see the anger.

"Everyone feels betrayed. Government's gridlocked. Trust in democracy collapsing. This can't go on. We need a new PM who can reach out (and) build some sort of coalition for a PlanB."

Pro-EU former education secretary Nicky Morgan told the Sunday Telegraph that Cabinet ministers should tell Mrs May "it's time to go", while Brexiteer Steve Baker said potential leadership contenders in the Government should "act now".

Tory backbencher Anne-Marie Trevelyan wrote in the same paper: "We now need a leader who believes in our country and wants to take her on the next stage of her journey."

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