Leadership Live: Defiant Julia Gillard shows her fight during Question Time ahead of leadership vote QUESTION TIME has ended after Julia Gillard told her political rivals to "take your best shot" while a vote on the Labor leadership will begin at 4.30pm. Rolling coverage 3.05pm: Down to the wire Senior cabinet sources have told News Limited the "numbers are very tight" for the Labor leadership vote. It is still unclear if Mr Rudd will run, our own Lanai Scarr reports. Julia Gillard says the vote on the Labo leadership will happen at 4.30pm. 2.55pm: QT in pictures WHILE the numbers are being sought and the Labor party prepares to vote for anew leader, here are some lighter moments from Question Time you may have missed. Kevin Rudd in the House of Representatives chamber at Parliament House before the announcement of the leadership spill. Simon Crean announces the spill on TV. Picture: Sky News And is this a sign of things to come? 2.47pm: Now for the spill THE LABOR Caucus is set to come together at 4.30pm AEDT for a ballot that will determine the country's Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, our own Jessica Marszalek reports. It will come just three hours after Simon Crean, now dumped from the frontbench, made his calls for Julia Gillard to throw open the competition and end the games that have enveloped the Government this week. While Kevin Rudd has not yet responded, it's believed he will throw his hat in the ring. 2.40pm: No confidence motion fails SPEAKER Anna Burke has announced that an absolute majority has not been reached on the no confidence motion. Prime Minister Gillard successfully calls for an end to Question Time as she said it was clear the Coaltition was no longer interested in proceedings. 2.35pm: Voting on no confidence begins MPs are currently voting in the House of Representatives on Tony Abbott's motion of no confidence in Prime Minister Julia Gillard. Meanwhile, Tony Abbott and Kevin Rudd have more in common than a desire to see Julia Gillard out of a job our own Sarah Blake reports, as both are wearing matching sky blue ties. 2.20pm: Bookies aren't backing Gillard BETTING agencies have hopped onto the political chaos in Canberra and have given current Prime Minister Julia Gillard an outside chance at $6.00 to retain the top job, while Kevin Rudd is the re-hot favourite at $1.10. 2.15pm: History in the making THERE are three rows of neatly dressed girls who filed into the public gallery shortly after 2pm, our own Sarah Blake reports. No doubt they started their day unaware they were about to witness the last few hours of Australia's first female Prime Minister. 2.08pm: No confidence vote OPPOSITION Leader Tony Abbott has moved to suspend standing orders and to move a motion of no confidence in Prime Minister Julia Gillard. "This is about the decent honest hard working people of Australia who deserve a strong and stable and competent government," Mr Abbott said."We are a great people, momentarily let down by our very poor government'," he added. This is a government which has lost its way. For our country's good, you should go,' he told Ms Gillard. Let's get rid of the faceless men and have a new government. Today's Question Time is the last scheduled one for two months and it appears to have been shut down by Tony Abbott. 2.00pm: Question Time kicks off PRIME Minister Julia has shown up for Question Time and it appears to be business as normal. The leadership vote is due for 4.30pm today. "I have determined there will be a ballot for the leadership," she said. In the mean time, take your best shot. 1.42pm: Marles backs Rudd LABOR MP Richard Marles has thrown his support behind Kevin Rudd to become the Labor leader. When the member for Corio was asked by Sky News if the former PM will be running for the position in the recently announced leadership spill, he replied: "Well I certainly think he should be." Meanwhile, The Prime Minister's officer has confirmed that Question Time will go ahead as normal. 1.20pm: Crean says hung parliament cannot go on Mr Crean said he was not standing as leader because he knew he didn't have the numbers, our own Lanai Scarr reports. Asked on the consequences of a leadership change Mr Crean said it would be a matter for the independents. "There is no point continuing on in a hung parliament in these circumstances," he said. 1.03pm: Crean calls for Labor spill SIMON Crean has asked Julia Gillard to call a leadership spill. He said he will not be standing as leader, but will put up his hand as deputy leader . It seems to me the party through the government is in a stalemate position, something needs to be done . . . to resolve this issue once and for all . . I am asking her to call a spill of all leadership positions in the party. This is an issue that has to be resolved, there is too much at stake. This is a regretful position for me, my relationship with the PM goes back some time. This is not personal. "This is about the party, its future and the future of the country," he said. 12.45pm: Spill speculation at fever pitch SIMON Crean will hold another press conference in parliament house, our own Lanai Scarr reports. It is likely to be about the Labor leadership. We'll be following live with a live video stream above. 12.40pm: All eyes are on Question time FOLLOWING the Gillard Government's move to dump the four remaining bills from their controversial media reforms, all eyes are on Canberra ahead of Question Time. Follow our live coverage from 2pm and tweets from our reporters on the ground. 12.35pm: Strategy time IT IS understood the decision was made to drop the remaining media bills at a parliamentary strategy meeting this morning. Communications Minister Stephen Conroy earlier told reporters negotiations on the bills, which include a measure to establish a public interest media advocate, were continuing with crossbenchers. 12.16pm: Labor withdraws media bills THE remaining four media reform bills the Gillard Government had hoped to pass by the end of today, have now been withdrawn, AAP reports. 12.05pm: Meet the original faceless men WHILE leadership speculation continues to dog the Labor party and the faceless men never seem far from the headlines, it's worth noting that today marks the 50th anniversary of the photograph that began it all. It was fifty years ago that Sydney's Daily Telegraph captured the famous images of former Labor leader Arthur Calwell and his deputy Gough Whitlam standing outside in the cold "waiting for instructions" from the 36 faceless men of the Labor Party conference, writes our own Samantha Maiden. 11.47am: Abbott gets heckled OPPOSITION Leader Tony Abbott has been heckled at a function where the government offered an apology to women who were forced to give up their babies for adoption in the 1960s and 1970s. In emotional scenes, Prime Minister Julia Gillard apologised for the practise which left unmarried mothers with the feeling their own children would be better off elsewhere. "We acknowledge your loss and grief," the prime minister said. A number of women in the audience began yelling at Mr Abbott when he used the words "birth parents." 11.40am: PM, lift your game: Crean Simon Crean has refused to say if he'd back Julia Gillard if a leadership vote is called, saying the question is hypothetical The Prime Minister has been given a stern warning to lift her game by senior Labor statesman Simon Crean during a confidential conversation in her office. Crean held the separate private talks with Julia Gillard and Kevin Rudd as the leadership stalemate continues to drag on the Government's performance. He has bluntly said the Government and the Prime Minister should make fundamental changes and end what he called division and appeals to class warfare. Malcolm Farr, National Political Editor 11am: Julia Gillard will issue a national apology to mothers and children who suffered from forced adoption practices. 10.57am: 'It's like an episode of Bold and The Beautiful' Manager of opposition business Christopher Pyne said if the government's media bills failed to pass the Parliament today it would be a vote of no confidence in Julia Gillard's government. "And we would expect them to call an election immediately," Mr Pyne said. He said the government was now akin to a "Bold and The Beautiful" episode. "This is no way to run a country," Mr Pyne said. Christopher Pyne has compared the Labor Government to an episode of The Bold and The Beautiful, pictured actors Ronn Moss and Katherine Lang Kelly. Simon Crean haas called on Labor MPs to unite. Picture: John Feder Source: News Limited Simon Crean under pressure during a doorstop at Parliament House in Canberra this morning. 8am: Labor polling taken on the eve of Kevin Rudd's political assassination revealed a rebound for the overthrown PM, an exclusive News Limited report revealed today.