A Conservative MP says he "can well understand" why voters might choose to back the rival Brexit Party in upcoming European elections.

West Midlands MP Michael Fabricant, a former Conservative whip, said voters could back the new Brexit Party led by Nigel Farage as a "protest" against the Tory government's failure to take the UK out of the EU.

Tories fear the poll on May 23 could lead to a poor result for Theresa May if she has not been able to deliver the Brexit that Britons voted for almost three years ago.

Mr Fabricant, MP for Lichfield in Staffordshire, said on Twitter: "In the local elections on Thursday, vote on local issues.

"The Conservatives in Lichfield have done a fine job providing services and keeping Council Tax down in spite of difficult national retail issues.

"But in the Euro Elections while I will support and campaign for the Conservatives and our great MEPs, I can well understand why many will choose to vote for @brexitparty_uk as a protest against the failure to deliver March 29th.

"Almost a ‘2nd Referendum/People’s Vote’."

If Mr Fabricant encouraged voters to support a rival party then he would be expelled from the Conservative Party.

The comments came after another West Midlands Tory, Telford MP Lucy Allan, made a positive comment about the Brexit Party.

She Tweeted a new story about the launch of the Brexit Party's election campaign and added the comment: "Some fantastic candidates".

Telford Conservative MP Lucy Allan praises candidates from the rival Brexit Party

Senior Tories have said they still hope the elections - and the threat posed by Nigel Farage’s new Party - can be avoided if a compromise deal can get through Parliament before polling day, allowing the contest to be cancelled.

But Labour has played down the prospects of a breakthrough in the cross-party talks, accusing Mrs May of refusing to change her Brexit red lines.

Shadow business secretary Rebecca Long-Bailey hit back at claims from the Conservatives that her side has been stalling, saying: “We’re certainly not dragging our heels.”

She said: “I think the discussions so far have been productive, they’ve gone into a lot of detail, there seems to be a willingness on both sides to move towards some form of consensus.”

But she told Sky News: “As yet we haven’t seen the Government move on any of their red lines, we’re having further discussions this week and hopefully we’ll see some movement.”

Conservative MP for Lichfield, Michael Fabricant
Conservative MP for Lichfield, Michael Fabricant

While there is unrest within the Conservative Party over Brexit, Labour also has divisions.

The party is in the middle of a major row over whether the party should come out in favour of holding another referendum in its manifesto.

Labour’s National Executive Committee (NEC) is to meet on Tuesday to decide what should go in the party’s manifesto.

The party is likely to state that it supports a “confirmatory ballot” on Brexit. However, there is disagreement over whether Labour backs a referendum in all circumstances or only to stop what it calls a “damaging Tory Brexit”.

Black Country MP Tom Watson, Labour’s Deputy Leader, has encouraged party members to contact members of the NEC and urge them to back a confirmatory ballot.

But he was criticised by NEC member and London councillor Claudia Webbe, who stated on Twitter: “Tom, this is divisive, our number one priority should be for a democratic socialist Labour government to deliver a sustained & irreversible shift in wealth and power in the UK. Supporting Jeremy Corbyn and the Labour Party to achieve this to kick out the Tories should be your focus.”

Black Country MP Tom Watson

Mr Watson (Lab West Bromwich East) responded, saying: “Hello Claudia, our members have not had time to discuss this important issue in their branches, hence my direct appeal. It’s not divisive to discuss policy.”

Pro-EU Labour supporters are reported to have sent more than 2,000 e-mails to the NEC urging them to include a “confirmatory” vote in the manifesto.

Unions Unison, GMB and Usdaw have also demanded that the manifesto include the policy.