Tory MP and Leader of the Commons, Penny Mordaunt, has urged the Church of England to approve same sex relationships and gay marriage ahead of a potentially historic vote by bishops, marking the first intervention by a Cabinet minister on the issue.

Ms Mordaunt, who represents Portsmouth North, has written to the Bishop of Portsmouth, calling on him to “recognise the pain and trauma” that failure to recognise same-sex marriage causes to “many LGBT+ people who are left feeling that they are treated as second class citizens within our society”. Mordaunt ran in the recent Conservative Party leadership elections. According to current canon law, no Church of England minister can bless or marry gay couples.

Ms Mordaunt’s interjection is the first time a serving Cabinet minister has called for the issue to be reformed within the Church.

Next month, bishops will present their long-awaited findings to the General Synod on the status of gay relationships and the possibility of same-sex marriage.

Traditionalists hope bishops will veto any changes to the existing stance that marriage and church weddings are only for opposite-sex couples.