The race to succeed Theresa May as prime minister has been described as a "shambles", and is in danger of becoming a "tragic farce", according to a senior Tory.
With at least 13 candidates now in the Conservative leadership race, the former minister Ken Clarke said the party has "never seen such a crisis", and said there are too many contenders in the contest.
Echoing views of some of his colleagues in the party, the Tory MP said: "It is all a shambles and is in danger of becoming a rather tragic farce unless some order is brought into it. There is nothing I can do about that; the 1922 Committee perhaps should have tightened up the rules before we started."
It came as Donald Trump, the US president, arrived in the UK for an official state visit, and before even landing at Stansted Airport referred to the London mayor Sadiq Khan as a "stone cold loser".
But cabinet minister James Brokenshire said those politicians boycotting Mr Trump's visit were "fundamentally mistaken".
"It's important that we engage seriously and sensibly with one of our closest allies," he said.
"People will have different views, and indeed that relationship allows us to have conversations on a range of different issues - I think the responsible thing to do is to actually engage with that process, to actually have that conversation.
"Those that are saying they don't want to see the president, I think that is fundamentally mistaken and is not in the best interests of our country or indeed, here in London, the best interests of our capital city."
This live blog has now closed, but you can read Monday's events below
Former Tory minister Ken Clarke has said he fears the Conservative Party is "tearing itself apart" and that both the Tories and Labour are facing a "very dangerous moment".
Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Mr Clarke said he thinks there are too many candidates running to be the next prime minister.
He said: "It is all a shambles and is in danger of becoming a rather tragic farce unless some order is brought into it. There is nothing I can do about that; the 1922 Committee perhaps should have tightened up the rules before we started."
He went on to say that international development secretary Rory Stewart "has a chance" of succeeding Theresa May as the next prime minister and "shake up the present establishment of the party".
Mr Clarke said the idea that Parliament would be unable to stop a push to leave the EU without a deal would be a "constitutional outrage".
He said: "I think the British constitution is stronger than that. A no-deal Brexit is attractive to a lot of people, including a lot of Conservative members, by the sound of it because it sounds like 'Oh, let's cut through all this nonsense, I'm tired of it. Three years of nonsense. Just let's leave', and the assumption is not much would change.
"But leaving means WTO rules - that means tariffs of 20% on our steel exports through Europe, 10% on our cars, and much higher figures on our agricultural exports, it means no agreement on the licensing of medicines, security, policing. It is a dangerous shambles, this no-deal thing.
"We haven't made our final decision, but we have also made it clear we are considering both the technical issues, how you make sure there isn't a back door so that a third country could use 5G to spy on us, but also strategic issues, that you make sure you are not technologically over-dependent on a third country for absolutely vital technology.
"We will certainly listen carefully to what they say on that."
"Sadiq Khan, who by all accounts has done a terrible job as Mayor of London, has been foolishly 'nasty' to the visiting President of the United States, by far the most important ally of the United Kingdom," Mr Trump tweeted on Monday morning while aboard Air Force One.
"He is a stone cold loser who should focus on crime in London, not me."
Two Tory leadership contenders have suggested they would reconsider Huawei’s involvement in the UK’s 5G network, as Donald Trump also waded into the debate ahead of his state visit.
Jeremy Hunt, the foreign secretary, and Sajid Javid, the home secretary, both expressed concerns – on the eve of Mr Trump’s trip – about allowing the Chinese tech firm to join the project.
It came after the US president urged Britain to be “very careful” because of national security issues and the potential implications for intelligence sharing between the allies.
Donald Trump's British envoy has sparked fury with claims that access to the NHS would be "on the table" in post-Brexit trade deal with the US.
Woody Johnson, the US ambassador to the UK, said the "entire economy" would be included in transatlantic negotiations, which could include allowing American private firms to bid for NHS contracts.
In an interview ahead of Mr Trump's state visit, Mr Johnson said the US was already "looking at all the components of the deal and trying to get everything lined up so when the time comes we’re ready to go".
Theresa May has said she hopes to build on the “strong and enduring ties” between the UK and US ahead of Donald Trump‘s much-anticipated state visit.
The prime minister issued a warm welcome to Mr Trump ahead of his three-day visit, which she said would “further strengthen” the special relationship between the two countries.
But the pomp and pageantry of the visit will mask deep tensions, after the president defied diplomatic convention to make a series of extraordinary interventions into British politics.
Jeremy Hunt has praised Donald Trump's economic record and suggested he could introduce similar tax cuts for business if he becomes prime minister.
The foreign secretary, who is one of 12 candidates standing to succeed Theresa May, said the US president had delivered "double the GDP growth that we have" and said we would want to "look at" the Republican's policy of "big business cuts in tax".
Mr Trump arrived in the UK on Monday morning for a three-day state visit and was greeted at Stansted Airport by Mr Hunt and other dignitaries.
"It's important that we engage seriously and sensibly with one of our closest allies," he said.
"People will have different views, and indeed that relationship allows us to have conversations on a range of different issues - I think the responsible thing to do is to actually engage with that process, to actually have that conversation.
"Those that are saying they don't want to see the president, I think that is fundamentally mistaken and is not in the best interests of our country or indeed, here in London, the best interests of our capital city."
"We need to find a way to get on with this, to get a new leader in place quickly.
"That period of reflection is what some colleagues I hope will do, looking at their levels of support and just thinking, 'Is this the right thing to do at this time'."
"I would say that I rather agree with James Brokenshire today, and I hope those who are not really, numbers-wise, in the running, will think twice about whether they really want to go ahead with their candidacies.
"If you look at people who've got established campaigns, I think we've got some good candidates, and whoever takes over will do a good job for the country."
Boris Johnson has pledged to “significantly” increase the amount spent on every secondary school pupil to at least £5,000 if he becomes the next prime minister.
In his first major domestic policy proposal, the front-runner in the Tory leadership race said he wanted to “unleash” the talents of the nation by giving every child the same opportunity to “express their heaven-sent gifts”.
The former foreign secretary likened Britain to a “giant that is managing heroically to hop on one leg”, but said funding schools properly could enable the nation to take “gigantic strides”.
Theresa May will not hold private talks with Donald Trump during his state visit, but Downing Street has denied that the White House axed a meeting.
At least one cabinet minister will join “a delegation” that will meet with the White House team in No 10, alongside a “range of officials”, it has emerged.
The prime minister’s spokesman rejected a BBC report that White House removed a one-to-one meeting from a schedule it circulated – insisting there was “nothing unusual” about the set up.
Conservative leadership candidates have given their backing to Donald Trump and criticised Sadiq Khan following the latest row between the pair.
Esther McVey, the former work and pensions secretary, said the London mayor was "churlish and childish", while Jeremy Hunt, the foreign secretary, accused him of "virtue signalling".
The US president caused uproar by attacking Mr Khan on Twitter moments before landing in the UK for a three-day state visit.
