Plotters say 40 Conservative MPs have joined a list of Tory rebels who want Theresa May to resign

Forty MPs have agreed to sign a letter of no confidence in Theresa May as European Union negotiators threaten to block trade talks until March unless Britain agrees to settle the Brexit divorce bill.

The embattled prime minister is facing a fight on three fronts following another week of Tory turmoil in which Priti Patel become the second cabinet minister to resign and two other cabinet ministers — Damian Green and Boris Johnson — faced pressure to quit.

May now faces a “make or break” month as:

● Senior European politicians and officials warn that the talks are entering a “crisis mode” as a preliminary deal will probably not be reached in December, as previously expected, but could instead be postponed until March

● Plotters