Theresa May faces a make-or-break battle to shore up her crisis-hit Cabinet today amid fears the government could collapse by Christmas.
The Prime Minister must achieve the political equivalent of a high-wire act as she carries out her second enforced reshuffle in a week.
Priti Patel's extraordinary resignation last night, hot on the heels of Sir Michael Fallon's humiliating departure, has deepened the chaos as Mrs May struggles to control amid a bewildering array of crises.
Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson faces demands to resign over loose comments that might double the jail term for a British mother in Iran.
His position deteriorated further today after Iranian state TV claimed that he had 'confessed' she broke the law by spreading propaganda - potentially meaning a 10-year sentence.
EU leaders are said to be preparing for the fall of Mrs May's government within weeks after scandal and divisions threatened to erode its slender grip on power.
Having faced a major backlash from MPs over her decision to appoint close ally Gavin Williamson after Sir Michael Fallon resigned over sleaze allegations seven days ago, Mrs May will be hoping her latest move is better received.
Miss Patel was a prominent Leave supporter in the referendum and Mrs May has up to now been careful to maintain a balance on the key issue in Cabinet.
Others in the frame include International Development ministers Rory Stewart and Alistair Burt, as well as sports minister Tracey Crouch.
Senior backbencher Jacob Rees-Mogg said: 'I don't think it has to necessarily be somebody who campaigned for Brexit, but it does have to be somebody who is enthusiastic about Brexit.'
Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith also insisted 'strong Brexit views' would be a factor in the PM's choice.
'I think we are all Brexiteers now. So the question is to what degree do you want someone in that job to be in support of David Davis and others, and I think therefore the balance on having strong Brexit views is one that in all probability that the prime minister will certainly look for,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
Amid farcical scenes, Miss Patel was ordered to fly home to face the music last night just 12 hours into a tour of Africa – and just two days after she was reprieved by Mrs May.
She quit in a short meeting with the PM in Downing Street - but in her resignation letter she issued a thinly veiled warning that she could challenge the Government from the backbenches over Brexit, as allies argued she had been treated harshly.
Miss Patel's departure follows Sir Michael Fallon's decision to quit as defence secretary last week, over accusations of misconduct against women.
Brussels is now braced for the PM being ousted by her party, or for another General Election bringing Jeremy Corbyn to Number 10.
One European leader told the Times: 'There is the great difficulty of the leadership in Great Britain, which is more and more fragile.
'Britain is very weak and the weakness of Theresa May makes negotiations very difficult.'
Miss Patel's downfall followed extraordinary revelations last week that she held a dozen secret meetings with senior Israelis, including prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, during a 'family holiday' in August.
During 'clear the air' talks in No 10 on Monday, Miss Patel promised the Prime Minister she had revealed everything about her secret dealings with Israel.
But to the irritation of Downing Street, it emerged the following day that she had proposed diverting British aid money to fund the Israeli army's humanitarian activities in the Golan Heights – a disputed territory which Britain has not recognised since it was annexed by Israel 50 years ago.
However, Downing Street continued to say the PM had full confidence in Miss Patel as late as 4.30pm on Tuesday.
Mrs May's patience finally snapped on Tuesday night when she learned that Miss Patel had held another undisclosed meeting with Israeli public security minister Gilad Erdan in Parliament on September 7.
The PM's problems could still escalate amid claims she spoke to Miss Patel about her meeting with Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu as long ago as September.
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