Suella Braverman's job as home secretary is in the balance today amid reports she will be "toast" in a forthcoming Cabinet reshuffle by the Prime Minister.

Rishi Sunak is said to be considering how to respond to her article accusing police of bias over protests in support of Palestine, which was not cleared by No 10.

Ms Braverman's actions have added to the tension around a major demonstration planned in London for Saturday - Armistice Day - by pro-Palestinian groups and the risk of counter-protests, particularly around the Cenotaph, even though the demonstration is not expected to go near the monument.

Officials in several departments in Whitehall have been told to prepare for a potential change of ministers, according to reports.

In her article in The Times yesterday the home secretary claimed there is a perception that police "play favourites" towards pro-Palestinian protesters who are "largely ignored, even when clearly breaking the law" prompting a constitutional row with the police over their operational independence.

She also referred to the protests as “hate marches” and compared them to rallies held in Northern Ireland during the Troubles.

Senior policing figures argued, she had “crossed the line” by accusing the police of bias and in effect ordering them to take stronger action against the protests.

“Suella is stupid,” one cabinet minister told The Times. “She has been a totally useless minister and is now making the mistake of believing her own publicity. She is toast.”

Education minister Robert Halfon said  today Ms Braverman has a "unique way of expressing herself".

"The home secretary has been doing her job and of course I respect that but of course the focus has got to be to ensure that the Remembrance services go ahead peacefully and securely this weekend," he told LBC.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt also distanced himself from her comments.

He told reporters: “As many other Cabinet ministers have said, the words that she used are not words that I myself would have used.

“But I have a productive relationship with her as a colleague and I have always given her the money that she needs to fund police, bring down crime and to fund the immigration and asylum system.”

Justice Committee chairman Tory  MP Sir Bob Neill said on LBC her position was “untenable”.

Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, treasurer of the influential backbench Tory 1922 Committee, suggested “we cannot carry on as we are” with Mrs Braverman as home secretary, and Mr Sunak may be forced to act.

“I think he will certainly want to have a very serious conversation with her to seek an undertaking from her that either she will handle it in a calmer, private way in the future or possibly consider it’s time for her to move to another job in the Cabinet,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today.

But Ms Braverman has supporters on the right of the party and any move against her by Mr Sunak could deepen divisions within Tory ranks.

Tory MP Miriam Cates told Today: "I think the home secretary has a view that is very mainstream in the rest of the UK."

Downing Street was still investigating on Thursday night the "details" about how the article was sent for publication.

It is understood that the article was submitted to No 10 but did not get signed off as significant alterations were requested. The piece was published nonetheless.

Opposition parties have called on Mr Sunak to sack the home secretary, with Labour calling him "spineless" for failing to act.

There is long-standing speculation at Westminster that Mr Sunak will carry out a major ministerial reshuffle ahead of the general election expected next year, which could see Ms Braverman moved.

More immediately, the Supreme Court will next week rule whether Government plans to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda are lawful.

There has been speculation that the Prime Minister may want to wait for that decision on a flagship project championed by Ms Braverman before embarking on any reshuffle.

Gavin Stephens, chairman of the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC), said that political views could not be allowed to influence decision making.

"The decisions that we take are not easy ones, but we do so impartially, without fear or favour, and in line with both the law and our authorised professional practice," he said.

Steve Hartshorn, national chairman of the Police Federation which represents rank and file officers, told Today that officers feared being caught between a rock and a hard place over the pro-Palestinian march on Armistice Day.

He said: "I can pretty much guarantee this weekend, if things go different to plan and it's not safe, it will be police officers that get injured, members of the public, that will then be blamed on the police.

"We're damned if we do and damned if we don't."

Director of Public Prosecutions Stephen Parkinson wrote in the Telegraph that "effective and fair justice requires independent institutions to apply the law without fear or favour".

He added: "Throughout this challenging period, the police have undoubtedly carried out their role with independence, resilience and grit."