MPs secretly promising to support more than one Tory leadership candidate have been warned against the tactic “backfiring”.

As the race to succeed Theresa May as Prime Minister heats up, candidates have been pitching to MPs for their support through regular dinners, meetings and calls.

One backbench MP told the Sunday Telegraph: “I’ve never felt more loved.”

While the majority remain undecided, some MPs are going one step further and telling rival leadership camps they will back them.

One supporter of Boris Johnson said: “I have no doubt multiple MPs will pledge their loyalty to multiple candidates. It is the nature of contest.