Laura Kuenssberg
BBC political editor

Philip Hammond - the former Conservative chancellor - is one of the group that is furious the PM is giving up on getting the Brexit deal through legal stages in Parliament.

One of that tribe in the Commons told me they told Mr Johnson in person last night how unhappy they were about him pulling the bill, being "churlish and taking his bat and ball home".

Mr Hammond has a point that government could have tried to push on with the Brexit bill by agreeing a new timetable to try again with the deal - but the former chancellor accusing the PM of blocking Brexit will have a lot of his former colleagues spitting out their cornflakes this morning.

The government doesn't trust Parliament not to change bill fundamentally and string out process for as long as possible. Parliament, as a body doesn't trust the government not to try to ram the Brexit Bill through if they get the election date for 12 December - although as each hour goes down that's harder.

BBC political correspondent Nick Eardley says the SNP is conflicted about the possibility of an election - will it stop the prime minister's Brexit? Or will it secure it?

MPs are voting on whether there will be a general election before Christmas. Why? Our political expert Chris Mason explains.

The PM wants a general election on 12 December, while both Labour and the Lib Dems have said they would prefer it to be a couple of days earlier. But will a disagreement over dates actually prove a stumbling block to an election?

The last few weeks have seen a gradual, further strengthening of the Conservatives' position in the polls.

In the latest poll by Opinium they hit 40% - the highest figure in a single poll since the middle of August.

They've also moved up to an average of 36% in the BBC poll tracker.

In the meantime, the Liberal Democrats have fallen away a little from their party conference high point to settle at that 18%-ish level they've occupied for much of the autumn while the Brexit Party continue to drift downwards.

Labour's average rating has essentially stayed flat.

Check the latest opinion poll trends with our poll tracker, which measures how people say they are going to vote at the next general election.

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

Brandon Lewis, the security minister, says Mr Hammond's assertion that there had been "blatant entryism" into the Tory party is not true.

There has been a "record" increase in party members and he does not believe that is down to entryism, he says.

He points to a diverse set of candidates preparing for the next election.

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

Mr Hammond says there is "blatant entryism" to change the Conservative Party.

He says: "I fear that the real narrative here is that the Vote Leave activists, the cohort who have seized control of Downing Street and to some extent Conservative HQ, wants this general election to change the shape of the Conservative Party."

Speaking of his own sacking after voting against the government, he says: "It really doesn't matter how many times my party kicks me... they will not stop me being a Conservative."

He adds: "I'm not ready to give up on my party just because a bunch of people from Vote Leave have been parachuted in and are now calling the shots."

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

Former Conservative chancellor Philip Hammond, who now sits as an independent MP, says talk of the prime minister having a plan is "generous".

He says there is "huge confusion here". "It is the government itself which has been blocking Brexit. I think the government is trying to create a narrative that it is Parliament that is blocking Brexit but that is simply untrue."

He adds: "We should be getting the [Withdrawal Agreement Bill] through Parliament."

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

Lord Kerslake, former head of the civil service, says there is a “mania” taking over Parliament and elections in winter are “not a good idea” for campaigners or voters.

He adds: “I just think on the whole we need to find a way of doing this process properly.

"Government have set out a plan for withdrawal, they should finish the job that they started.”

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

Labour's shadow trade secretary Barry Gardiner says Labour wants to ensure university students get a vote in any election next month.

"The first thing would be to ensure that students are not going to be disenfranchised by an election on 12 December," he says.

He adds that a 9 December poll "certainly would" be more acceptable.

BBC Breakfast

Security minister Brandon Lewis says he "hopes there is a very good chance" that the PM's fresh bid for an election is supported by MPs today.

He adds that the previously proposed 12 December date would have allowed the Withdrawal Agreement Bill plenty of time to pass.

"We've got to make sure we're doing the right thing for the country," he says, adding: "It is Parliament stopping Brexit."

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

A little earlier, SNP MP Drew Hendry said he and his colleagues needed to see what was in the prime minister's fresh bill for a general election before plotting their next move.

"Boris Johnson simply can't be trusted. We must wait and see what is put down," he said, adding that the reason his party backed a 9 December poll was to stop "Brexit but also this terrible Brexit [Withdrawal Agreement] Bill."

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

Lib Dem foreign affairs spokesperson Chuka Umunna says the party is "not prepared to accept" an election on 12 December because to do so would allow the government to get its Withdrawal Agreement Bill through the Commons.

He adds that the row over the election date is, in part, led by a desire to "look after our young people". He says most universities break up on the 16 December so "doing it earlier that week is much more preferable".

Laura Kuenssberg
BBC political editor

Image source, PA Media

First off, the powerful cross-party coalition of MPs who have worked together to oppose the idea of ever leaving the EU without a deal now have a delay in place until 31 January.

That means not just that Mr Johnson has failed to keep his Halloween promise, but also that there is a window of three months when there is time for something decisive to happen without us leaving the EU with no deal.

Don't get your hopes up, that doesn't mean that anything decisive is in the bag, whichever or whoever's side you are on.

But the deadline by when Parliament has to move has stretched out again, so there's more time to play with.

Read more from Laura here.

To allow sufficient preparations to take place, Parliament must be dissolved a minimum of 25 working days before the date of an election.

The Lib Dems and the SNP want an election on 9 December, because they say that will prevent any chance of Mr Johnson's Brexit deal being approved before Parliament is dissolved.

Both parties want to fight the election on a platform of stopping Brexit entirely.

The legislation the PM will propose on Tuesday requires a lower threshold for approval than the motion he tabled on Monday.

Crucially, the Lib Dems and the SNP have indicated they might be prepared to support it.

The DUP, which opposes Mr Johnson's Brexit agreement and which abstained in Monday's vote, might also come on board.

However, there are arguments over the date of an election.

The Commons backed the government's election motion by 299 to 70 on Monday- but that was well short of the two-thirds majority needed under the Fixed-term Parliaments Act.

The government failed to secure the necessary two-thirds of MPs' votes for a general election on Monday.

All Conservative MPs backed the motion, but the vast majority of Labour MPs abstained, along with the SNP and DUP. All but one MP from the Liberal Democrats voted against it.

The vote came after Mr Johnson officially accepted the EU's offer of an extension of the Brexit deadline to 31 January.

This means the UK will not now leave the EU on Thursday - 31 October - a promise at the heart of Mr Johnson's campaign to become prime minister.

Welcome to our live political coverage this morning, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson expected to make a fresh bid for a general election.

We’ll be keeping you up to date with all the latest developments throughout the day.