Labour’s deputy leader Tom Watson has told Jeremy Corbyn he has lost authority with the party’s MPs and will in all likelihood face a leadership challenge.
Mr Watson met Mr Corbyn this morning, in a crucial meeting following a wave of shadow cabinet resignations, and ahead of a meeting of Labour MPs on Monday night, where a vote of no confidence in the leader will be tabled.
Follow the latest live updates
It is understood that Mr Watson stopped short of telling Mr Corbyn to resign, but warned that the Labour leader has lost authority within the parliamentary party.
Labour exodus - The list of MPs who have left Corbyn's shadow cabinet
Another wave of senior resignations from the Labour frontbench is thought to be imminent.
The meeting between Mr Corbyn and Mr Watson was described as "civil" by a spokesman for the leader. But a senior party source told the BBC Mr Corbyn was left in no doubt he had lost the support of the Parliamentary Labour Party.
It comes after a raft of senior resignations over the past 24 hours.
Mr Corbyn lost 12 members of his shadow cabinet on Sunday and further resignations have already taken place ahead of a crucial meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party on Monday evening.
Shadow foreign minister Diana Johnson, shadow civil society minister Anna Turley and shadow defence minister Toby Perkins all resigned first thing on Monday morning as the party crisis continued.
They were followed by Stephen Kinnock, who served as a parliamentary private secretary on the business team, and Chris Matheson, a PPS on the shadow justice team.
6 ways Britain leaving the EU will affect you
No immediate change in immigration status
The Prime Minister will have to address other immediate concerns. He is likely to reassure nationals of other EU countries living in the UK that their status is unchanged. That is what the Leave campaign has said, so, even after the Brexit negotiations are complete, those who are already in the UK would be allowed to stay GettyMore expensive foreign holidays
The first practical effect of a vote to Leave is that the pound will be worth less abroad, meaning foreign holidays will cost us more nito100And we wouldn’t even get our money back
All this will be happening while the Prime Minister, whoever he or she is, is negotiating the terms of our future access to the EU single market. In the meantime, our trade with the EU would be unaffected, except that companies elsewhere in the EU may be less interested in buying from us or selling to us, expecting tariff barriers to go up in two years’ time. Whoever the Chancellor is, he or she may feel the need to bring in a new Budget Getty ImagesDid somebody say recession?
Mr Carney, the Treasury and a range of international economists have warned about this. Many Leave voters appear not to have believed them, or to think that they are exaggerating small, long-term effects. But there is no doubt that the Leave vote is a negative shock to the economy. This is because it changes expectations about the economy’s future performance. Even though Britain is not actually be leaving the EU for at least two years, companies and investors will start to move money out of Britain, or to scale back plans for expansion, because they are less confident about what would happen after 2018 AFP/Getty ImagesInterest rates might rise
The trouble with inflation is that the Bank of England has a legal obligation to keep it as close to 2 per cent a year as possible. If a fall in the pound threatens to push prices up faster than this, the Bank will raise interest rates. This acts against inflation in three ways. First, it makes the pound more attractive, because deposits in pounds will earn higher interest. Second, it reduces demand by putting up the cost of borrowing, and especially by taking larger mortgage payments out of the economy. Third, it makes it more expensive for businesses to borrow to expand output GettyHigher inflation
A lower pound means that imports would become more expensive. This is likely to mean the return of inflation – a phenomenon with which many of us are unfamiliar because prices have been stable for so long, rising at no more than about 2 per cent a year. The effect may probably not be particularly noticeable in the first few months. At first price rises would be confined to imported goods – food and clothes being the most obvious – but inflation has a tendency to spread and to gain its own momentum AFP/Getty ImagesNevertheless Mr Corbyn has said he will fight on and challenged the party rebels to put up a candidate to stand against him.
Previous polls suggest Mr Corbyn has strong support amongst Labour members, who would have to be convinced of his departure in any ensuing leadership contest.
The plotters however point to polls suggesting that Labour voters at large – a wider category – have lost faith in his leadership.
Mr Corbyn has since "refreshed" his shadow Cabinet in an attempt to stabilise his position.
Emily Thornberry will take over the position of shadow foreign secretary to replace Hilary Benn, whose sacking triggered the rebellion of moderate Labour MPs.
Jeremy Corbyn heckled and urged to resign during Pride parade
Diane Abbott takes the post of shadow health secretary while Pat Glass is shadow education secretary.
Middlesbrough MP Andy McDonald steps into the shadow transport secretary role while former soldier Clive Lewis becomes shadow defence secretary.
Other appointments include Rebecca Long-Bailey, Kate Osamor, Rachel Maskell, Cat Smith, and Dave Anderson.