Brexit crisis looms

No-deal divorce tipped to spark food, drug shortages in UK

BRITAIN will face shortages of fuel, food and medicine if it leaves the European Union without a transition deal, jamming ports and requiring a hard border in Ireland, official government documents leaked to the Sunday Times show.

The Times said the forecasts compiled by the Cabinet Office set out the most likely aftershocks of a no-deal Brexit rather than worst-case scenarios. They said up to 85 per cent of trucks using the main channel crossings “may not be ready” for French customs, meaning disruption at ports would potentially last up to three months before the flow of traffic improves.

The Government believed a hard border between the British province of Northern Ireland and the Republic would be likely as current plans to avoid widespread checks would prove unsustainable, the Times said.

“Compiled this month by the Cabinet Office under the codename Operation Yellowhammer, the dossier offers a rare glimpse into the covert planning being carried out by the Government to avert a catastrophic collapse in the nation’s infrastructure,” the Times reported. “The file, marked ‘official-sensitive’ ... gives the most comprehensive assessment of the UK’S readiness for a no-deal Brexit.”

The UK is heading towards a constitutional crisis at home and a showdown with the EU as Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly vowed to leave the bloc on October 31 without a deal unless it agrees to renegotiate the divorce.

After more than three years of Brexit dominating EU affairs, the bloc has repeatedly refused to reopen the withdrawal agreement.

Mr Johnson will this week tell French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel that the Westminster Parliament cannot stop Brexit and a new deal must be agreed if Britain is to avoid leaving the EU without one.