NADINE Dorries is said to be standing down as culture secretary following Boris Johnson’s departure from 10 Downing Street.

Sources close to Ms Dorries said she believed it was the best time to go.

The PA news agency understands she was given the opportunity to carry on in Cabinet but had chosen instead to return to the backbenches.

It is expected that she will now be given a peerage in Mr Johnson’s resignation honours list, triggering a by-election in her Mid Bedfordshire constituency.

During the Tory leadership campaign, Ms Dorries was a prominent supporter of Liz Truss and an outspoken critic of Rishi Sunak – in one controversial tweet likening him to Brutus stabbing Julius Caesar over the way he had turned on Mr Johnson.

She accused fellow Tory MPs of staging a “coup” against the outgoing Prime Minister, telling BBC Panorama: “I was quite stunned that there were people who thought that removing the prime minister who won the biggest majority that we’ve had since Margaret Thatcher in less than three years.

“Just the the anti-democratic nature of what they’re doing alone was enough to alarm me. And for me it was a coup.”

Ms Dorries was also one of Johnson’s most outspoken defenders during the ‘partygate’ scandal. She called an investigation by the Commons Privileges Committee into whether he lied to MPs a “witch hunt”, adding it represented the “most egregious abuse of power”.

Ms Dorries was appointed culture secretary in September last year, having previously served as health minister.

As a minister, she was involved in drawing up legislation to curb social media companies through the Online Safety Bill and led controversial moves to privatise Channel 4.

Boris Johnson departs Downing Street

This follows resignations from the front bench as Priti Patel announced she would be stepping down as Home Secretary and Nigel Adams resigned from Cabinet.

Boris Johnson departed 10 Downing Street this morning to meet the Queen in Balmoral. In his departing speech, he said “this is it folks” before offering his “fervent support” to Liz Truss’ government.