George Osborne believes it is time for a new Conservative Party leader, reminding Cabinet members that “fortune favours the brave”. The former Chancellor of the Exchequer also claimed the Tory Party was “hammered” in the local elections that took place last week. Mr Osborne told Sky News: “I think there’s a point where you have to ask yourself as a political party, ‘how many more elections are we going to lose?’ So we lost the majority in 2017, we got hammered in the local elections earlier this month, and now we have got these European elections.

“Where it’s quite possible that the Conservative Party for the first time in its long and distinguished history is going to come fourth in a national poll.

“And essentially there’s a responsibility on the current members of Parliament and indeed the supporters in the country to do something about that.

“And it is within their hands. You cannot just say ‘this is all beyond my control’, if you’re a member of the Cabinet you have a responsibility.

“And as it happens, if I was giving them any advice, I would suggest to the individually if they want to lead, fortune favours the brave in these leadership contests.”

Fortune favours the brave in these leadership contests

George Osborne

The former Tory MP for Tatton added: “My observation was that she lost her majority in the General Election she called and she would never regain it, and she would be a lame duck Prime Minister.

“And I’m afraid that has been borne out by events. Eventually the Party has to confront the truth, which is it needs a new leader, it needs a new agenda, it needs to win over supporters who have disappeared from it.

“And it needs to make an appeal to urban, metropolitan Britain that have currently turned their back on Conservatism. If that continues to be the trend then there will not be a Conservative Government for much longer.

A Tory grassroots revolt has been threatened on June 15 if the Prime Minister does not set out specifics on when she will leave Downing Street.

But, following Prime Minister’s questions on Wednesday and growing speculation that she would announce a departure date, a Downing Street spokesperson said Theresa May is not planning to bring forward her departure.

The spokesman said: “She is here to deliver Brexit in phase one, and then she will leave and make way for new leadership in phase two.”

Earlier, an official announcement about her failure to avoid European elections was quickly followed by continuing deadlock over Brexit talks with Labour.

Mr Brady has faced angry calls from backbenchers for “clarity” on Mrs May’s timetable for standing down and triggering a leadership contest.

Theresa May fought her corner at an emergency meeting with the National Conservative Convention, where she is expected to set out her reasons for not naming the date of her departure.

About 800 members were asked to vote on a motion, which reads: “We no longer feel Mrs May is the right person to continue as Prime Minister to lead us forward in the negotiations.

“Therefore with great reluctance ask that she considers her position and resigns.”

The news came as Mrs May officially accepted she cannot get her Brexit deal through Parliament in time to avoid European elections on May 23.

Her effective deputy David Lidington confirmed the elections will go ahead, but said the Government was “redoubling our efforts” to get a Brexit deal ratified by the start of July so the MEPs elected this month never have to take their seats.

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