MPs will stage a vote of confidence in the government today - amid renewed opposition calls for Boris Johnson to step down immediately and hand over to a caretaker prime minister.
A general election could be triggered if the Conservative government is defeated, although that would require a significant number of Tory MPs to vote against it, or at least abstain. That however which would appear unlikely given the party is leaderless and in no fit state to fight an election, while the initial wave of anger at Mr Johnson has largely subsided.
It may offer the Prime Minister a final chance to defend his record before MPs after the tumultuous events which led to his downfall, amid accusations of lying and rule-breaking. Mr Johnson had been expected to open the debate – although it is not clear whether he will now do so or whether he we leave it to another minister.
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Unusually, the vote will take place on a government motion. Labour had originally said it would seek to hold a no confidence vote after Mr Johnson announced he was staying on as Prime Minister until the autumn and a new Conservative leader was in place.
However, the government refused to accept the wording of the Labour motion, which expressed no confidence in the government and the Prime Minister, effectively forcing Tory MPs to go on record saying they still had confidence in Mr Johnson if they wanted to avoid an election. So instead ministers tabled a motion of their own after the Commons deputy speaker Nigel Evans told the two parties to resolve the matter themselves.
Ahead of the vote, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey, who has tabled an amendment demanding Mr Johnson resign immediately, said: "Conservatives MPs have the chance to show they are listening to the people by getting rid of this failing Prime Minister. Boris Johnson should go now and, when a new Conservative leader is in place, we should have a general election so that people can kick out these Conservatives once and for all."
The vote comes on the same day MPs will cast their votes in the third round of the Tory leadership contest. Candidates will be whittled down to just four.
The remaining candidates were involved in series of bad-tempered exchanges in the latest TV debate – staged by ITV – on Sunday evening as the battle for a place in the run off ballot of party members became ever more bitter.
Former chancellor Rishi Sunak, who topped both the first two ballots clashed with international trade minister Penny Mordaunt and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss over the economy.
And former equalities minister Kemi Badenoch and Tom Tugendhat – who finished fourth and fifth respectively in the last ballot and are battling to avoid elimination – squared off over who had the record and experience to be prime minister.
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