The Conservative Party's central office received more money from the dead than from the Tory grassroots rank and file last year as income from membership fees nearly halved.

The Tories generated £1.5million in membership fees in 2016 but that figure dropped 43 per cent to £835,000 in 2017, according to official statistics.

Meanwhile, the Tories were given £1.7million in 2017 in the form of bequests, compared to £301,000 in 2016.

The figures are in stark contrast to Labour which received £16.2million in membership fees last year, up significantly on the £14.4million paid in 2016.

The huge reduction in Tory membership fees raises major questions about the health of the party’s grassroots. The party said that the bulk of it's membership fees go to local constituency associations, rather than the party's central office.

Brandon Lewis, the chairman of the Conservative Party, said in March of this year that the Tories had 124,000 members.