Politics

Ministers say No Deal Brexit dossier is ‘scaremongering’ and worst case scenario after leaked documents predict food, fuel and medicine shortages


MICHAEL Gove has insisted the No Deal Brexit dossier is a “worse case scenario” – while a Downing Street source claimed it had been leaked by a disgruntled former minister.

Published by The Sunday Times the documents warn Britain will be hit with a three-month “meltdown” at its ports, a hard Irish border and shortages of food and medicine if it crashes out of the EU without a deal.

 The leaked papers warn of chaos at customs terminals

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The leaked papers warn of chaos at customs terminalsCredit: PA:Press Association

According to the documents, petrol import tariffs would “inadvertently” lead to the closure of two oil refineries, while protests across the UK could “require significant amounts of police resources” in a no-deal scenario.

They also warn Gibraltar could face delays of up to four hours at the border with Spain for “at least a few months”.

A senior Whitehall source told the newspaper: “This is not Project Fear – this is the most realistic assessment of what the public face with no deal. These are likely, basic, reasonable scenarios – not the worst case.”


The dossier reveals:

  • The Government expects the return of a hard border in Ireland.
  • Medical supplies could be “vulnerable to severe extended delays”.
  • Availability of fresh food could go down, meaning prices will rise, hitting the most vulnerable.
  • Up to 85 per cent of lorries using the main Channel crossings “may not be ready” for French customs, and could face delays of up to 2.5 days.
  • Months of border delays could “affect fuel distribution”, impacting supply in London and the South East.
  • Passenger delays at EU airports, as well as St Pancras, Eurotunnel and Dover.
  • Rising social care hosts.

However Mr Gove, the Cabinet minister responsible for no-deal planning, tried to play down fears today.

He claimed the cross-government paper for a no deal Brexit – codenamed Operation Yellowhammer – was a “worst case scenario”.

The Brexiteer tweeted: “We don’t normally comment on leaks – but a few facts – Yellowhammer is a worst case scenario – v significant steps have been taken in the last 3 weeks to accelerate Brexit planning – and Black Swan is not an HMG doc but a film about a ballet dancer…”

Speaking to reporters today he added: “It is the case, as everyone knows, that if we do have a ‘no-deal’ exit there will inevitably be some disruption, some bumps in the road. That’s why we want a deal.

“But it is also the case that the UK government is far more prepared now than it was in the past.”

Energy Minister Kwasi Kwarteng told Sky News’ Sophy Ridge on Sunday: “I think there’s a lot of scaremongering around and a lot of people are playing into project fear.”

‘ESTABLISHMENT’ PLOT

Meanwhile a Number 10 source said a former minister leaked the dossier to try to influence discussions with EU leaders.

They said: “This document is from when ministers were blocking what needed to be done to get ready to leave and the funds were not available.

“It has been deliberately leaked by a former minister in an attempt to influence discussions with EU leaders.

“Those obstructing preparation are no longer in Government, £2 billion of extra funding already made available and Whitehall has been stood up to actually do the work through the daily ministerial meetings. The entire posture of Government has changed.”

Elsewhere hard-line Brexiteers Iain Duncan Smith and Owen Paterson claimed the leak was an example of the “establishment” plot to “sow fear in people’s minds”.

‘INSANE RISKS’

But a former head of the British civil service, Lord Bob Kerslake, who described the document as “credible”, said the dossier “lays bare the scale of the risks we are facing with no-deal Brexit in almost every area”.

He added: “These risks are completely insane for this country to be taking and we have to explore every avenue to avoid them.”

Irish deputy prime minister Simon Coveney said, in a tweet, that Ireland had “always been clear” a hard border in Ireland “must be avoided”.

The leak comes as Boris Johnson prepares to travel to Berlin to meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday, before going to Paris to meet French President Emmanuel Macron the following day.

Mr Johnson has repeatedly vowed to leave the bloc on Halloween with or without a deal – and pointed the finger at the “anti-democratic” EU for pushing the UK towards a No Deal by refusing to negotiate.

After more than three years of Brexit dominating EU affairs, the bloc has repeatedly refused to reopen the Withdrawal Agreement which includes an Irish border insurance policy that Johnson’s predecessor, Theresa May, agreed in November.

Mr Johnson will tell Mrs Merkel and Mr Macron there must be a new Brexit deal when he makes his first trip abroad as PM.

Details of the PM’s travel plans emerged as Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn reiterated his call for MPs to work together to prevent a no-deal Brexit.

Mr Corbyn, who set out his plan to be installed as a caretaker prime minister last week to stop the UK crashing out of the EU without a deal, said his proposal is the “most democratic way” to prevent a no-deal.

 Michael Gove - the Cabinet minister responsible for no-deal planning - insisted Yellowhammer represented a "worst-case scenario"

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Michael Gove – the Cabinet minister responsible for no-deal planning – insisted Yellowhammer represented a “worst-case scenario”Credit: Rex Features
 Boris Johnson has warned rebel Tory MPs their opposition to a no-deal Brexit was damaging the prospect of getting a new deal

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Boris Johnson has warned rebel Tory MPs their opposition to a no-deal Brexit was damaging the prospect of getting a new dealCredit: AFP or licensors
​Britain ​will face fuel, food and medicine shortages if it leaves the EU without a Brexit transition deal, leaked documents claim





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