Theresa May calls on Labour MPs to put 'national interest' first and back her Brexit deal in defiance of Corbyn

The prime minister also aimed criticism at members of her own party considering voting down the Brexit deal she hopes to agree with the European Union

Theresa May has told Labour MPs they should put the “national interest” ahead of loyalty to Jeremy Corbyn when it comes to a decision over whether to back her government’s Brexit plans.

The prime minister also appeared to be aiming her comments at members of her own party considering voting down the Brexit deal that she hopes to agree with the European Union.

It comes amid reports that up to 30 Brexit-backing Labour MPs might support Ms May’s deal, while Tory Eurosceptics say they have 40 ready to vote against it.

Labour dismissed claims that any significant number of the party’s MPs were prepared to back Ms May, with Mr Corbyn’s spokesman saying there was no evidence of it.

Speaking to the House of Commons as fraught Brexit negotiations continue in Brussels and ahead of a critical summit next week, Ms May said: “I would hope that everybody across this whole House will put the national interest first.”

Her spokesman was later asked if the point was that Labour MPs should put the national interest ahead of loyalty to the leader, to which he responded: “Yes.”

Mr Corbyn is all but certain to tell his MPs to vote against the deal that Ms May brings back from Brussels, firstly because it is likely to fail the strict tests set out by the party’s Brexit spokesman Sir Keir Starmer.

But the failure of Ms May to secure parliamentary backing for her deal would also bring closer the prospect of an election at which Labour would have a chance of seizing power.

The Labour leader’s spokesman said: “You can see from what MPs have been saying over the last few days that there is very little confidence in the parliamentary Labour party in the kind of package that the government and Theresa May appear to be negotiating.”

He added: “It’s quite clear that the prime minister is in a very difficult position, she spent most of the last two years negotiating with her own party and not the European Union and the prospects of a significant rebellion among her own MPs is pretty clear.

“So it’s not surprising that she is trying to find support elsewhere, we’ve made very clear what kind of package we would support and what we won’t.”

It was Ms May’s first appearance in the Commons since last month’s Salzburg summit, when EU leaders told her that her Chequers blueprint for Brexit would not work.

She has come under growing pressure from Brexit-backing Tories to drop the plan agreed by the cabinet at her country residence in July and instead seek a Canada-style free trade deal.

Eurosceptic Tories claim dozens of Conservatives are prepared to vote against Chequers, but veteran pro-EU Tory Ken Clarke urged her to ignore hardline Brexiteers and bring forward a deal acceptable to MPs on both sides of the Commons.