Theresa May to discuss no-deal Brexit plans as Government warns they WON'T pay £39bn divorce bill

The Prime Minister is set to discuss preparations for a no-deal Brexit with the Cabinet today after she vowed to not pay the EU divorce bill if an agreement is not reached.

While the Government is still hoping to reach a Brexit deal with the EU, Theresa May yesterday made it clear Britain would rethink its agreement to pay the exit settlement in full if it did not achieve an arrangement on future trading relations.

That sentiment was reiterated by Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab, who stated that if there was no deal ‘the Government would not pay the terms of the financial settlement’.

He wrote in The Daily Telegraph: ‘There’s no deal without the whole deal.’

Mr Raab added to the BBC that the UK would ‘recognise our strict legal obligations’ but that the amount paid would be ‘significantly, substantially lower’ than the £39 billion.

He said the warnings were a ‘statement of fact’, not a threat.

He said it was ‘unlikely’ there would be no deal but the EU could not ‘cherry pick’ the parts of the negotiations that had gone well if that happened.

Mr Raab told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘It’s not a threat, it’s statement of fact as part of our no-deal planning that, yes, we would be mindful of our strict legal obligations, but the amount and the phased way it is set out in the withdrawal agreement would fall away because there would be no deal.

‘It’s not a threat and it’s not an ultimatum, it’s a statement of fact. I don’t say anything outside of the negotiation room that I haven’t and wouldn’t directly to our EU friends and partners, and I think it is well understood on both sides.’

The remarks came as the Government was releasing a new raft of technical papers expected to focus on how a no-deal Brexit would impact on things such as mobile phone roaming charges.

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Mr Raab said the Government wanted a good agreement, but added to the Daily Telegraph: ‘It will require our EU friends to match the ambition and pragmatism we have demonstrated.

‘If that doesn’t happen, the UK will manage the challenges of no-deal, so we make a success of Brexit.’

The Brexit Secretary also accused people who warned about shortages of food and medicines after a no-deal withdrawal of ‘scaremongering’, saying it was ‘nonsense’ to claim UK supermarkets would run out of food.

Contingency planning for short-term disruption was nothing new, he added.

The stronger Government stance followed open talk at a meeting of Tory backbenchers in the hardline Brexit European Research Group (ERG) of a bid to topple Mrs May as PM unless she abandoned the Chequers strategy on EU withdrawal.

ERG chairman Jacob Rees-Mogg told Channel 4 News: ‘Chequers is a dying duck in a thunder storm, if it is not quite a dead duck.’

The move to release a fresh raft of technical Brexit papers comes amid speculation that leaving the EU without a solid agreement could see the return of levies for using mobile devices on the continent.

The pro-Europe Best for Britain campaign said the re-imposition of roaming charges could cost business people visiting the EU up to £778 a month.

However, Mr Raab said the technical papers would include plans for ‘protecting consumers from mobile phone roaming charges’.

Other areas covered by the documents will include the impact of a no-deal scenario on standards relating to the environment and vehicles.

The papers will be published after the meeting of the Cabinet on how a no-deal outcome could be handled.

Mr Raab, who will hold talks with EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier in Brussels on Friday, said: ‘With six months to go until the UK leaves the European Union, we are stepping up our ‘no-deal’ preparations so that Britain can continue to flourish, regardless of the outcome of negotiations.

‘These technical notices are part and parcel of our sensible, pragmatic approach to preparing for all outcomes.

‘Getting a deal with the European Union is still by far and away the most likely outcome, and I will continue to champion our Chequers proposals with Michel Barnier as the best way of securing the deep and special partnership we want with the EU.’