A senior Tory source tells the PA Media agency PM Boris Johnson took five questions at the meeting with MPs, two of which were “hostile” – while the other three were not.
The source said Sir Charles Walker, the MP for Broxbourne, told the PM “at times you’ve driven me absolutely wild”, which drew “a big laugh”.
Sir Charles was said to have added that he accepted Johnson’s apology – and warned colleagues that “defenestrating a PM is a brutal, bloody, shocking, horrible, terrible thing”.
But former Conservative chief whip Mark Harper said if Johnson stayed he would be asking MPs to “defend the indefensible”.
The prime minister rejected this “very, very aggressively”, PA was told.
Number of public Johnson supporters up to 131
The BBC’s political research unit places the number of Conservative MPs pledging publicly to support Boris Johnson in the confidence vote at 131.
The prime minister needs 180 votes to get over the line – if every MP votes.
The ballot, taking place in one of Parliament’s committee rooms between 18:00 and 20:00 BST, will be a secret one. And we’ll know the outcome at 21:00.
Why is a vote happening?
Some Conservative MPs have handed in letters calling for Mr Johnson to resign.
Pressure on the prime minister has grown following the publication of details of Downing Street parties which broke Covid rules.
A report, by senior civil servant Sue Gray, said many of the gatherings “should not have been allowed”.
What is a no confidence vote?
An attempt by Conservative MPs to remove their leader is known as a vote of confidence.
For a vote to be held, at least 15% of Conservative MPs have to write a letter saying they no longer support their leader. At the moment this works out as 54 MPs (out of 359).
Their letters are sent to Sir Graham Brady, the chairman of a group called the 1922 Committee, which represents them.
On Monday he said there were enough letters for a vote to take place.
How does a no confidence vote work?
To win, Mr Johnson needs more Tory MPs to vote for him to continue, rather than be replaced.
So, if every Conservative MP takes part, Mr Johnson needs 180 votes (half his MPs, plus one).
Tory MPs won’t have to say how they vote, but some will choose to do so.
What happens if Mr Johnson wins?
If he wins, Mr Johnson can continue as Conservative Party leader and prime minister.
Under current rules, Tory MPs would not be allowed to hold another no confidence vote for a year.
However, there has been speculation some could try to change the rules, to hold another vote sooner. When asked about it, Mr Brady said “technically, it’s possible”.
It is also possible that if Mr Johnson won by only a few votes, he could be persuaded to think twice about whether he had enough support to continue.
Source: BBC