Conservative MPs have condemned Nadine Dorries and branded her attacks on Rishi Sunak as “dangerous” in the wake of the murder of Sir David Amess.

The Culture Secretary, who is backing Liz Truss in the Tory leadership race, was told to “wind her neck in” by colleagues after she called Mr Sunak an “assassin” and shared a doctored image depicting him stabbing Boris Johnson in the back.

Three fellow ministers said she should dial down her rhetoric in the wake of the murder of Mr Amess and Jo Cox, suggesting that Ms Truss would not condone her language.

Ms Dorries shared a doctored image on Twitter that portrayed Mr Johnson as Julius Caesar, with Mr Sunak as Brutus wielding a knife behind his back.

She has previously criticised the Tory leadership hopeful for wearing Prada shoes, arguing that such a display of his wealth shows he is out of touch.

Robert Buckland, the Wales Secretary, said: “I think that sort of imagery and narrative is not just incendiary, it's wrong.

"I think it's time for those who think that an argument about Prada shoes or earrings is more important, for instance, should wind their neck in and let people talk about the issues rather than the personality,” he told the BBC.

Greg Hands, a business minister, condemned Ms Dorries' actions as distasteful and "dangerous".

“I'm sure Liz Truss would disown this kind of behaviour,” he told Sky News on Sunday.

"I think this is appalling. Look, it's not even a year since the stabbing of Sir David Amess at his Southend constituency surgery, so I think this is very, very bad taste, dangerous even".

Writing in the Mail on Sunday, Ms Dorries said she "may have gone slightly over the top" last week by comparing the millionaire former chancellor's £3,500 suit to Ms Truss's £4.50 earrings from high street chain Claire's Accessories.

"I wanted to highlight Rishi's misguided sartorial style in order to alert Tory members not to be taken in by appearances in the way that happened to many of us who served with the chancellor in Cabinet," she wrote.

"The assassin's gleaming smile, his gentle voice and even his diminutive stature had many of us well and truly fooled".

Ms Dorries accused Mr Sunak of travelling "along a path of treachery" and planning a "Tudor-esque" coup against the Prime Minister.

Simon Hoare, a senior Conservative MP, also took to Twitter to criticise Ms Dorries.

Brandon Lewis, the former Northern Ireland secretary, who has thrown his weight behind Ms Truss in the leadership contest, told Sky News: "It's certainly not the sort of thing I would tweet.

"Nadine is well known as having strong views on things. Nadine speaks for herself, she's very much an individual on that. But that is not a position that Liz would take."