As many as 40 lawmakers from the Conservative Party have agreed to sign a letter of no-confidence against British Prime Minister Theresa May, the Sunday Times reported. The number is eight short of the mark needed to trigger a leadership contest within the Conservative Party.

According to the report, concerns about the future of Brexit talks and the resignations of ministers Priti Patel and Michael Fallon are the main reasons for the MPs’ letter of no-confidence. If there is a leadership contest in the Conservative Party and a challenger defeats May, he or she would take over as both the party leader and the British prime minister, Reuters reported.

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On Saturday, negotiators from the European Union had given the British government two weeks to respond on the Brexit divorce bill, The Guardian reported. The bill outlines the financial commitments the two sides must honour during and after Britain’s exit from the European Union.

Senior European Union politicians and officials have warned that Brexit talks have entered a “crisis mode”, and a preliminary deal might be reached only in March 2018 instead of December this year, The Sunday Times reported. The next round of Brexit talks will start in mid-December, the BBC said.