Rishi Sunak has been left bracing for further defections as several Tory MPs enter talks with Labour about crossing the floor.
The Prime Minister was stung by two defections in recent weeks as Mid Suffolk MP Dan Poulter joined Sir Keir Starmer over the Tories' handling of the NHS.
Dover’s right-wing MP Natalie Elphicke sent shockwaves through Westminster when she surprisingly crossed the floor during Prime Minister’s Questions last week.
However, the number of Tory MPs could collapse sat on the Commons benches behind Sunak could soon collapse even further.
Speaking to The Telegraph, Shadow Health Secretary West Streeting said: “I think the dilemma, particularly One Nation Conservatives have, is do they stay and fight and try and turn the Conservative Party around in opposition?
“Or do they roll their sleeves up and try and be part of turning this country round as part of a Labour team?
“And that’s a dilemma that only they can answer in their own heads.”
He added: “They’re making a journey that we want millions of Conservative voters to undertake.”
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However, the Ilford North MP declined to comment on the number of Tory MPs in defection discussions.
Christian Wakeford became the first Tory MP since 2007 to defect from the Conservatives to Labour amid Boris Johnson’s involvement in partygate.
The number of defections from the Tories to Labour since World War Two stand at just seven, with several more defections to smaller parties.
However, other Tory MPs have instead opted to ontinue with the current Conservative exodus.
Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris became the 65th Tory MP to announce his intention to stand down at the next election.
In the letter, the Daventry MP wrote: "Working with you I helped negotiate and deliver the Windsor Framework, which both solved many of the major practical issues created by the Northern Ireland Protocol, put in place as we left the EU, and helped reset our countries' relationship with our European neighbours.
"Then, after long and detailed negotiations within Northern Ireland, we produced the command paper Safeguarding the Union, which resulted in the return of Stormont and devolved government to serve the people of Northern Ireland.
"I strongly believe the conditions now exist for Northern Ireland to thrive, with privileged access for manufactured goods into the EU single market, whilst being an integral part of our UK internal market and being able to benefit from the international trade deals we negotiate."
Heaton-Harris, who describes himself as a "fierce Eurosceptic" and chaired the Brexit-backing European Research Group during the 2016 referendum, added: "It [Northern Ireland] finds itself in a remarkable favourable position - and as Northern Ireland thrives, our union will strengthen."
