Theresa May has been given until teatime on Wednesday to come up with a "roadmap" to her resignation as leader of the Tory party - or she will have one forced upon her.

Sir Graham Brady, the chairman of the 1922 committee of backbench Conservative MPs, is understood to have made clear backbenchers' frustration at a meeting on Tuesday night.

Tory backbench frustration with Mrs May boiled over after David Lidington, her de facto deputy, confirmed that Britain will have to take part in the European Parliament elections in 15 days' time despite months of assurances that this would not happen.

Mr Lidington said that it was "regrettably not going to be possible to finish" the Brexit process "before the date that is legally due for European parliamentary elections".

Mrs May's official spokesman added it was "a matter of deep regret to the Prime Minister that we have not been able to deliver Brexit on time".

Sir Graham is understood to have given Mrs May until 4pm on Wednesday - the start of the meeting of the party's 1922 executive - to set out a "roadmap" for her departure from Number 10,