Conservatives could merge with Reform UK if Robert Jenrick becomes leader as he fails to rule out pact

"This is not a man who's gonna spend his time on trampolines and going down water flumes as a third-party leader," he said on the PopConversation podcast, in a dig at Liberal Democrats leader Sir Ed Davey.

Mr Towler continued: "I could possibly see him bringing a small handful over with him, but it could work; there are all sorts of ways."

"Could I see a situation where, in a post-electoral sort of devastation, that sort of post-apocalyptic landscape of the Conservative Party after the next General Election, could I see a rump Tories becoming sort of like the Liberal Unionists in the 1890s, Jenrick as a sort of Joe Chamberlain bringing his raggle-taggle army over with him.

"Because I can't see someone like Robert Jenrick wanting to be the leader of a rump party."

At the Conference today, Mr Jenrick did not rule out a deal with Reform UK, but said it is "not a priority".

He said he "doesn't think there is going to be a deal" and wants to "focus on changing the Tory party".

Meanwhile, Tory MP for Romford Andrew Rosindell issued a warning that Labour may have to rely on other left-wing parties to form a Government as he joined calls for a merger with Nigel Farage's party.

He told GB News: "Our electoral system can’t accommodate two parties that are broadly conservative.

"That means a divide in the vote and the calamity of another Labour government for five years, or even worse, a Labour government propped up by Liberal Democrats, Greens, Plaid Cymru, SNP, fruit and nut, and whoever else is around to prop Keir Starmer up in office.

"No, thank you. I would much rather see people of like mind on the right of centre to work together...We need to get everyone working together to rescue our country from the disaster of this left-wing socialist government."

However, not everyone was calling for the two parties to merge, as shadow energy secretary Claire Coutinho likened Mr Farage to Jeremy Corbyn.

She said: "They’re promising nationalisations we can’t afford, more tax for more welfare, more spending, which means more borrowing, which means more debt for our children.

"If Government is here to serve the liberties of the people, that means allowing them to keep more of the money that they earn.

"I worry that our system as it stands is teaching people to be less capable than they are. We can’t survive if our culture becomes a competition of victimhood. The risk is people start to ask themselves not: 'What can I do' but: 'Why bother at all?'."

These calls were echoed by Shadow Chancellor Sir Mel Stride, who said Reform were pushing "fantasy economics."

He told Sky News: "For far too long, our country has been living beyond its means.

"We’ve got a huge amount of debt, huge servicing costs on that debt and a trajectory for our economy that, I’m afraid, is unsustainable.

"Whilst the other parties are either busy messing the economy up, which is what Labour is doing, or fantasy economics from Reform, we have to be that grown-up party that sets out its stall around fiscal responsibility."

When asked about the dire polling situation for the Tories, Sir Mel said: "We’re four years from an election. Anybody who attempts to predict what will happen in four years’ time is being pretty brave.

"If you were interviewing me in 2019 and I was a socialist, you’d be saying: 'Mel Stride, you’ve had the worst result for the Labour Party since the 1930s, you’re never going to get back into office.'

"Look what happened five years later. All things are possible.

"What we’ve got to do is hold our nerve and, as we are at this conference, come forward with credible, bold, relevant policies, and that’s exactly what we’re doing."