Labour MPs have praised Yvette Cooper for a full-throated attack on Theresa May as they start to cast around for future party leadership contenders.

The former Labour minister accused the Prime Minister of not being a “woman of her word” after her general election U-turn.

The assault at Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) was the lone highlight of an otherwise sombre day for Labour MPs that saw many of them vote for an election despite believing it would leave them unemployed.

Ms Cooper is also understood to have received applause after a speech to Labour MPs on Tuesday night urging them to fight for very seat the party currently holds.

The former leadership contender was criticised for going on holiday mid-way through the 2015 campaign, eventually won by Jeremy Corbyn.

And Labour MPs believe others, including Stephen Kinnock, the son of former Labour leader Neil Kinnock, are also priming themselves to run.

The party is trailing the Conservatives by 20 points in the polls.

However, Mr Corbyn has refused to stay that he will stand down if his party suffers a disastrous defeat on June 8.

In the chamber Ms Cooper, who is married to former minister and Strictly Come Dancing star Ed Balls, told Mrs May: "The Prime Minister yesterday said she was calling a general election because Parliament was blocking Brexit.

"But three quarters of MPs and two thirds of the Lords voted for Article 50, so that's not true, is it?

"And a month ago, she told her official spokesman to rule out an early general election, and that wasn't true either, was it?

"She wants us to believe that she is a woman of her word.

"Isn't the truth that we cannot believe a single word she says?"

Mrs May replied that Labour, the SNP, the Liberal Democrats and peers had all indicated their opposition to Brexit.

"I think it is right now to ask the British people to put their trust in me and the Conservative Party to deliver on their vote last year," she added.

After the Scottish Secretary David Mundell was forced to deny that he had sworn at Ms Cooper.

He took to the micro-blogging website Twitter to say: “For all you Twitter lip readers out there, I said "Leadership Pitch" after Yvette Copper's PMQ. Don't think I was only one to think that!”

Ms Cooper's performance was praised by the shadow health secretary, Jonathan Ashworth, the shadow local government minister, Rebecca Blackman-Woods and former deputy leader Harriet Harman among others.

In recent months she has carved out a strong presence as the chair of the powerful Commons Home Affairs Committee.

She has also impressed fellow Labour MPs with interventions on refugees, especially child refugees.

Meanwhile, Labour suffered a blow as a string of high-profile MPs announced that they would not seek re-election,

Among them was on of the architects of Brexit and one of the few Labour MPs to campaign for a Leave vote, Birmingham MP Gisela Stuart.

Former shadow Treasury minister MP Rob Marris also announced he would not stand again, along with Iain Wright, the chair of the Commons Business committee.

Meanwhile, Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale has started the process of selecting candidates north of the Border.

She has written to party members across Scotland to ask them to apply.

Following changes brought in last year, candidate selection is in the hands of the Scottish party.

The deadline for applications is Friday evening.

It is understood that the Scottish party's ruling body will convene shortly afterwards, and that the party hopes to be able to start naming candidates next week.