Embattled Liz Truss will treat a vote in the Commons tonight seeking to ban fracking as a "confidence motion" in her Government.
The severely weakened Prime Minister, who is facing calls to resign, has ordered Tory MPs to vote against the motion with a three-line whip.
The move comes as Labour launches an audacious bid to force a ban on fracking by giving the party powers to seize control of the parliamentary timetable next month.
