Tory Party leadership: Theresa May gathers support in bid to stop Boris Johnson

'There is a special place in hell reserved for Boris. We need to get behind Theresa. She’s the grown up,' says source close to David Cameron

Theresa May is likely to challenge Boris Johnson (EPA)

Leadership challengers to Boris Johnson and their backers have been working over the weekend to manoeuvre into position.

The Conservative Party is currently undergoing a crisis following the vote to leave the European Union and Prime Minister David Cameron's decision to stand down as leader.

Just over half of the party’s MPs supported a Brexit while others, including Mr Cameron, campaigned vigorously against it.

Many former Cameron supporters are said to be likely to back Home Secretary Theresa May in the imminent leadership contest.

“There is a special place in hell reserved for Boris,” a source close to Mr Cameron told The Sunday Times. “He and [Michael] Gove have basically engineered a right-wing coup.”

The source added: “We need to get behind Theresa. She’s the grown up.”

However Mr Gove, the Justice Secretary and a prominent Leave campaigner, has privately voiced his support for his campaign-mate, Mr Johnson, the newspaper reported.

However, other potential challengers have also emerged.

Education Secrtary Ncky Morgan – who in 2015 admitted considering running for the leadership following the departure of Mr Cameron - also attacked the tone of the Leave campaign and said the party should be wary about drifting into an “ideological comfort zone”.

Stephen Crabb, successor to Iain Duncan Smith as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, is also rumoured to be a contender for the top job.

He launched a passionate defence of One Nation conservatism on Saturday, which could be interpreted as a leadership pitch.

Mr Crabb wrote in The Telegraph: “In 2016 we should be living in a golden age of social mobility. The truth is, we are not.

“Compared to competitor nations we have persistently low levels of social mobility. And the challenge is not just to get a few more comprehensive school kids into elite grade universities or professions. It’s more fundamental than that: re-creating a positive cycle of aspiration, opportunity and outcomes in the poorest communities.”

He praised Mr Cameron’s espousal of ‘compassionate conservatism’ and added: “For too long One Nation was almost code for a wetter, weaker kind of Conservative politics.

“For this generation of Conservative politicians it should be the watchword for a muscular defence of British values and a fierce commitment to break down barriers to opportunity.”

During his resignation speech, Mr Cameron said he hoped the new leader would be in place before the Conservative Party conference in October.