Tory MP says he wouldn’t vote for his own party today

A Conservative MP has said he wouldn't vote for his party if he wasn't already in parliament, labelling Theresa May's government a "s**tshow".

Johnny Mercer, elected in 2015 as the representative for Plymouth Moor View, told the parliament's The House magazine yesterday that there was "absolutely no chance" he would run for a Tory candidacy today.

He further warned that several MPs are gearing up to "kick up a stink" if things don't change soon, adding: "I'm not going to sit at the back of the bus and watch it head towards the edge of the cliff. I'm not going to let us go down without a serious s**t fight."

Mercer said May's Chequers plan on Brexit was a classic politician's answer when faced with a difficult proposal, and called it "the ultimate in not making a decision". 

Read more: Theresa May rows back from Brexit transition extension after Tory backlash

Additionally if he were a member of the public today, he said: "I wouldn’t go and vote. Just being honest, I wouldn’t vote. Of course I wouldn’t, no." 

"There’s no doubt about it that my set of values and ethos, I was comfortable that it was aligned with the Conservative party. I’m not as comfortable that that’s the case anymore."

The news follows severe backlash against May's comments in Brussels yesterday from Tory MPs, in which she claimed keeping the UK signed up to EU rules for a further year was not her idea but could be a solution to the Irish backstop issue.

Veteran eurosceptic Bill Cash dubbed the thought "unthinkable", while former Remain campaigner Nick Boles branded it "madness".

German Chancellor Angela Merkel suggested an extra period of transition would not be needed once a "political solution" to the impasse was found.