BORIS Johnson was last night branded a "flop" as his bid to trigger a General Election failed.

Opposition MPs and Tory rebels refused to back the PM's plan for a snap poll until a No Deal Brexit is blocked.

4 Boris Johnson speaking in the House of Commons as MPs debated the Brexit delay bill Credit: HOC/JESSICA TAYLOR

It means Mr Johnson's "do or die" pledge to leave the EU on October 31 with or without an agreement is hanging by a thread.

On a further day of chaos and controversy at Westminster, Mr Johnson's younger brother Jo QUIT as a Tory MP.

It comes after the Tory leader branded Labour chief Jeremy Corbyn a "chicken" for refusing to agree to an election after repeatedly calling for one throughout the Brexit process.

Mr Johnson was also confronted during a tense meeting with top Cabinet ministers over his decision to expel 21 Tory MPs who voted against his government on Tuesday night.

Here's the latest on what's happening with Brexit in Parliament and Boris Johnson's attempts to call a snap General Election.

What’s happening today?

The legislation to delay Brexit in order to prevent a no-deal departure passed all stages in the Commons on Wednesday.

There were fears it could have been talked out in the Lords with one Tory peer accused by colleagues of time wasting.

But in an unexpected move at 1.30am this morning (Thursday, September 5) the Tories chief whip in the House of Lords said all stages of the European Union (Withdrawal) (No. 6) Bill will be completed by 5pm on Friday.

It comes after a week of high drama in which 21 rebel Tories defied Boris Johnson to join with opposition parties to take control of the House of Commons agenda.

That means MPs will now debate legislation which will force the Government to seek a Brexit extension if there's No Deal - this time, to the end of January 2020.

The 21 rebels swiftly had the whip withdrawn from them.

In an unprecedented show of strength, the PM ordered the whip be removed from a list of high-profile MPs - including Sir Nicholas Soames, grandson of Sir Winston Churchill.

This afternoon Jo Johnson, Boris' younger brother, QUIT as a Tory MP after being "torn between family loyalty and the national interest".

4 Boris Johnson speaking outside Number 10 Downing Street Credit: Reuters

What did Boris Johnson say about a General Election?

Addressing the nation outside Number 10 on Monday, September 2, the Prime Minister insisted: "I don't want an election, you don't want an election.”

He said that if MPs voted to block the option of a No Deal Brexit they would "plainly chop the legs out from under the UK position" when he is negotiating.

But a senior Government source said any bid to "wreck" the UK's negotiating position by passing a law blocking a No Deal Brexit would prompt a motion for an early election.

In the wake of MPs passing the delaying bill in the Commons, the Prime Minister called for a Britain to go to the polls on October 15.

The move, however, failed to win the two thirds of MPs necessary under the Fixed Term Parliaments Act.

4

The vote was lost after Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn ordered his MPs to abstain in the knowledge this would prevent Boris getting the two thirds majority he needed.

That prompted a furious Mr Johnson brand Corbyn "chicken" saying he was “the first leader of the opposition in the democratic history of our country to refuse the invitation of an election”.

Labour’s mass abstention last night came despite Mr Corbyn and other senior figures in his party having called for a general election as soon as possible more than 15 times so far — in this year alone.

Ian Murray, Labour MP for Edinburgh South, said Mr Johnson had been "exposed as a flop Prime Minister".

He said: "He must now accept the will of Parliament and halt a catastrophic No Deal that would destroy communities in Scotland. But he simply can't be trusted, so there can't be an election before October 31 or it risks No Deal."

How has the SNP reacted?

Last night SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford urged Mr Johnson to "show some respect for democracy" by ruling out a No Deal.

The Nats chief insisted his party was "ready for an election", but did not back the PM's bid for one to be held on October 15 "because we do not trust" him.

4 Ian Blackford told the PM to "show some respect for democracy" Credit: PA:Press Association

He said MPs from across the House should come together to "bring down this Government, not on the Prime Minister's terms, but on the right terms".

Mr Blackford said: "We will not be party to Boris Johnson's games or allow him to use an election to force a No Deal Brexit through the back door."

He added: "We stand ready to bring down the Tory government and give Scotland the chance to stop Brexit and to decide its own future."

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Nicola Sturgeon also said it was "right" for MPs to wait until the passage of its "anti-No Deal" legislation before voting for an election, as Mr Johnson should not be allowed to "cut and run for an election simply as a tactic to force through" a crash out.

And the First Minister added: "Opposition must get Bill through and then seek to force election BEFORE Parliament prorogued."

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