Therese Coffey said she “nearly died” from the stress of being a government minister and was hospitalised for a month.

Ms Coffey, 51, who is the Conservative MP for Suffolk Coastal, resigned from her role as environment secretary on Monday as Rishi Sunak reshuffled his cabinet.

In an interview with BBC Radio Suffolk on Tuesday, Ms Coffey revealed the toll working in government had taken on her wellbeing.

“Nearly five years ago I got so ill, I nearly, dare I say it, died,” she told the BBC.

“I was in hospital for a month with some of the stresses that happen with ministerial life.”

She added: “A few years ago I certainly worked myself into the ground somewhat, but I learned a lot from that incident and that’s why I’ve always had a joy about life.”

Ms Coffey has held several ministerial jobs over the years including health minister and work and pensions minister, and she also served as deputy prime minister under Liz Truss.

In her resignation letter to the prime minister, which was published by his office, Ms Coffey said she believed it was the “right time to step back from government”.

In a letter responding to Ms Coffey, Mr Sunak thanked her for “dedicated service”.

“You have driven work across government to support the rural economy and taken measures to protect food production here at home,” Mr Sunak said.