May’s Brexit chief rejects her EU plan

Davis wrote a letter to tell PM her idea for how customs should operate after the divorce is unworkable

UK Prime Minister Theresa May is fighting to win Cabinet backing for her Brexit plan as a compromise proposal that aimed to unite warring ministers was rejected by her chief negotiator.

Brexit Secretary David Davis has written to May to tell her that her new idea for how customs should operate after the divorce is unworkable, according to a person familiar with the situation, confirming an earlier report in The Telegraph.

His move comes just two days before May gathers her ministers together to try to force an agreement on what kind of trading relationship the UK will seek from the European Union after the divorce. She’s been briefing ministers on some of the details of her plan, but has kept the full document from them. Some officials don’t expect to see it until the night before.

At stake is whether the UK government can devise a coherent and unified position that negotiators can then present to their EU counterparts. The details that have emerged so far indicate May is seeking to maintain closer ties to the bloc than she initially envisaged. While Environment Minister Michael Gove — a key Brexit campaigner — said he didn’t expect ministers to resign in protest, pro-Brexit lawmakers are outraged by what they see as a betrayal of their project.

Businesses meanwhile are stepping up their demands on May to make a deal with the bloc that protects their interests. Jaguar Land Rover added its voice to the chorus on Wednesday, saying a bad Brexit deal would jeopardise investment and jobs.

Whatever May comes up with needs to be a plan that the EU doesn’t immediately reject, as time runs out to reach a deal before exit day in March.

Time running out

Whatever May comes up with needs to be a plan that the EU doesn’t immediately reject, as time runs out to reach a deal before exit day in March. May meets German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin on Thursday as she seeks support in European capitals. The EU has so far dismissed her proposals on trade and customs.

The new customs compromise aimed to bridge the divide between ministers in May’s Tory party who want a clean split with the EU and their colleagues who say businesses need to keep the closest possible ties.