Six of Mark Pettingill’s white constituents have lobbied him to support the ruling party if a vote of no confidence in the Government takes place tomorrow.

The independent MP, whose vote would most likely determine whether the motion succeeded or failed, told The Royal Gazette he had received “no phone calls” but “e-mails from six people, all OBA stalwart supporters”.

He said the senders were all from the Harbour Road area of Warwick, representing the “white echelons” of society. But he refused to be drawn on whether the messages had influenced him ahead of the potential vote.

Nor would he speculate on whether Michael Dunkley, the Premier, would head-off the vote by calling a General Election today or tomorrow.