On Wednesday, in the hours before the confidence vote in Mrs May, two MPs had the Conservative whip restored which meant they could vote in the secret ballot.

One of them, Andrew Griffiths, was suspended from the party after "barraging two of his female constituents with thousands of sexual text messages", Labour's Jess Phillips told the Commons earlier.

The other - Charlie Elphicke - also faced claims of inappropriate sexual behaviour. Both have denied wrongdoing.

In the Commons, Ms Phillips began by reading out a text from Mr Griffiths: "She's so cute, so sweet, I can't wait to beat her. Can she take a beating?"

She went on: "Not my words, but the words of the MP for Burton, as he was barraging two of his female constituents with thousands of sexual text messages."

She said both Mr Griffiths and Mr Elphicke were given the whip back "without any due process", and asked what message that sent about trusting processes in place in the Commons.

She then asked Leader of the House Andrea Leadsom what mattered more - political power or protecting victims of sexual harassment and abuse.

Mrs Leadsom replied, saying she was "absolutely committed to changing the culture of this place and to seeing that everybody here is treated with dignity and respect".

She added that the decision had been taken by the Chief Whip and was not something that she had been privy to.

The EU is preparing summit conclusions which will contain reassurances on the controversial backstop for Northern Ireland.

The BBC has seen a draft, but this wording is not yet agreed, so the final phrasing may be different.

On the backstop, the draft says "The European Council underlines that the backstop does not represent a desirable outcome for the [European] Union. The backstop is only intended as an insurance policy to prevent a hard border on the island of Ireland."

It goes on: "The European Council also underlines that, if the backstop were nevertheless to be triggered, it would apply only temporarily unless and until it is superseded by a subsequent agreement.

"In such a case, the Union would use its best endeavours to negotiate and conclude expeditiously a subsequent agreement that would replace the backstop, so that it would only be in place for a short period and only as long as strictly necessary."

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Tim Loughton, a Conservative MP who campaigned for Leave, says of last night's confidence vote: "She won - at least we got on with it.

"It's really important now that everyone rallies round - fortunately it wasn't that much of a distraction."

He describes Mrs May's speech ahead of the vote as "slightly emotional".

He says she told them she would like to have taken them through the next election, not least because of the "mess-up" that was last year's general election which she called prematurely.

He says she acknowledges it was wrong to do it.

Mrs May lost her majority, forcing her to form a minority government with the DUP propping her up.

Image source, EPA

With Theresa May on the ropes, Jeremy Corbyn is coming under pressure from other opposition parties - and some of his own MPs - to finish her off with the knockout blow of a no-confidence vote in the House of Commons.

Unlike the vote she has just survived this would give all 650 MPs - not just 317 Conservatives - a say over whether she should remain in power.

A no-confidence vote - won by a single vote - was how Margaret Thatcher removed Labour from power in 1979, triggering a general election that she won.

So what are they waiting for?

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Phillip Souta, head of UK policy at Clifford Chance, says there are a number of ways Mrs May could make changes to the withdrawal agreement, including

• adding a protocol or annexe to the treaty,
• having conclusions in the document
• Or exchanging letters

MPs will not be asked to vote on Theresa May's Brexit deal before the end of this year, Downing Street has said.

A Number 10 spokeswoman told reporters: "The 'meaningful vote' will not be brought to Parliament before Christmas."

The spokeswoman said the vote - which was scheduled for Tuesday this week but postponed by the prime minister after she accepted she would lose heavily - will come "as soon as possible in January".

The government has committed to holding it before 21 January.

Confused by the wrangling over Brexit? Read our simple guide to all the twists and turns.

Image source, AFP

A little reminder of tonight's panel on BBC Question Time. It'll be David Dimbleby's last time at the helm after 25 years.

Image source, AFP/Getty Images

Theresa May has survived a leadership challenge but that doesn't mean her problems have gone away.

The government has delayed the crucial vote on the Brexit deal because they were going to lose.

The PM has travelled to Brussels to seek "additional reassurance" about thebackstop. That's the part of the withdrawal agreement that would prevent a "hard" border on the island of Ireland if no trade agreement is reached between the EU and UK by the end of the "transition period".

It's not clear when MPs will now get the chance to vote, but the government has promised it will be before 21 January and the Brexit deal cannot be legally implemented until it has been approved in the House of Commons.

What would happen if it was rejected? Read more here.

EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker is known for his tactile greetings.

Image source, AFP

Leaders (L-R): Dutch PM Mark Rutte, UK's Theresa May, Belgian PM Charles Michel, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron.

Image source, Getty Images

A former science minister who resigned over Theresa May's Brexit plan has said it will "take a Christmas miracle" for her to come back from Brussels with something that will get the deal though Parliament.

Speaking to the BBC's deputy political editor, John Pienaar, Sam Gyimah said it was what "unites" him with hard Brexiteers.

"But there are other options," he added.

"Downing Street has to rip up the rule book, start all over again and come up with a policy that can carry a majority across the House of Commons.”

Image source, EPA

Leo Varadkar, the Irish premier (taoiseach), said he expects Theresa May's assurances on the backstop to be honoured.

He suggested Britain could lift the threat of a no-deal Brexit by suspending, or ending, the Article 50 withdrawal process.

"It is absolutely within the gift of the United Kingdom to take no deal off the table if they wish to," he added.

Image source, UK Parliament

Labour MPs have criticised the decision to let two suspended Conservative MPs take part in last night's confidence vote in Theresa May.

Burton MP Andrew Griffiths and Dover's Charlie Elphicke had the whip restored - both faced claims of inappropriate sexual behaviour, but denied wrongdoing.

Labour MP Jess Phillips said it showed votes were "all that mattered".

In response, Commons leader Andrea Leadsom defended the move and said she was determined to keep staff safe.

Read more here.

The House of Commons Library - an independent research unit - has this guide to what might happen next.

Laura Kuenssberg
BBC political editor

It's official. Theresa May has just confirmed publicly what she told her MPs last night - she will step down before the next general election.

Not surprisingly she had no desire to get drawn into a conversation about a date of departure, telling us that her focus was getting an improved Brexit agreement and getting the deal "over the line".

But despite obvious demands at home from her MPs to change tack in the negotiations, No 10 seems to have little expectation of anything happening fast here, warning against an "immediate breakthrough".

But few in her party at home believe she has a genuine chance of getting a fundamentally different version of the deal - at least not at this summit.

Read more from Laura here.