Brexit: MPs should cut short summer break to tackle no-deal crisis, says Labour's John McDonnell

Labour has demanded parliament be recalled within days amid recriminations over a leaked Whitehall dossier warning of months of border chaos after a no-deal Brexit.

John McDonnell threw his weight behind calls for MPs to cut short their summer break by several weeks to tackle the looming threat of a disorderly exit from the EU by the end of October.

More than 100 MPs wrote to the prime minister at the weekend to demand parliament returns to tackle the "national emergency" the country faces.

Mr McDonnell, the shadow chancellor, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I agree - I think it is a good initiative by this group of MPs to say that we need to get back into parliament.

"We are facing a critical issue here and should be debating it in parliament."

Mr McDonnell, an ally of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, said he believes parliament needs to be reconvened "in the next few days".

He added: "There is a need now to bring MPs back together again because we need time now to really have a proper debate and discussion about this matter."

His intervention comes after cross-party MPs - including several Conservatives - wrote to Mr Johnson to warn that the country was "on the brink of an economic crisis" and to urge the recall of the Commons.

The group said: “We face a national emergency, and parliament must be recalled now in August and sit permanently until 31 October, so that the voices of the people can be heard, and that there can be proper scrutiny of your government.”

More follows...