SPECIAL BREXIT SERVICE
Army delivers food if we’ve no deal
PLANS have been drawn up for troops to deliver food and medicine in case Britain leaves the EU with no deal.
Ministers have included dramatic blueprints for military helicopters and trucks to be on standby ahead of our exit next March.
Normally only used during civil emergencies, the plans would see the armed forces help the civilian authorities.
Troops would be called in if blockages at ports led to food, fuel and medicines becoming scarce.
Helicopters and Army trucks would take emergency supplies to vulnerable folk outside the southeast if there are shortages.
The move came as supermarkets warned suppliers to stockpile items such as tea and coffee.
And NHS hospitals will stockpile drugs bought from outside the EU in case the Prime Minister is unable to strike a deal.
A Ministry of Defence source said it had not received a formal request to supply aid. But officials confirmed there was “a blueprint for us supporting the civilian authorities that can be dusted off ”.
One minister said: “There is a lot of civil contingency planning on the prospect of no deal. That’s not frightening the horses, that’s just being utterly realistic.”
Reports on planning for a nodeal Brexit were due to be published during the summer.
But the plans were scrapped over fears they would cause mass alarm. They are now due to be released at the end of next month.
Meanwhile, Italy’s deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini has told Mrs May she should take a hard line with the EU over Brexit negotiations or risk being cheated.
She should be prepared to walk away without a deal, he said, adding: “On some principles there is no need to be flexible and you should not go backwards.”