Khan: We fall off cliff without a Brexit deal

LONDON Mayor Sadiq Khan has warned of a ‘colossal’ risk to the UK if Theresa May fails to strike a Brexit deal within two years.

In an official report about the impact of Brexit on the capital, Mr Khan says the economy will ‘fall off a cliff’ if Britain is forced to quit the EU single market and has to pay World Trade Organisation (WTO) tariffs instead.

The report by Mr Khan, tipped to be a future Labour leader, says Mrs May’s aim of striking a deal within two years is ‘unrealistic’.

Instead of threatening to walk out if she fails to win a deal, she should promise to retain access for Britain to the single market.

He claims the Prime Minister has ‘underestimated’ the danger of Britain crashing out of the EU and having to rely on basic WTO rules.

‘The tariffs and barriers that this would place in the way of businesses would inevitably restrict trade with their largest market and significantly damage

‘The public did not vote for a weaker economy’

both London’s and the UK’s economy,’ says the Khan report.

He claims Mrs May’s aim of completing Brexit talks within two years of triggering Article 50 is ‘unrealistic’. ‘This complacency is compounding uncertainty and risks causing unnecessary damage to our economy,’ says Mr Khan.

He says he fears more banks and other big firms in the City will move staff to other foreign capitals. Mr Khan, who campaigned for the UK to stay in the EU, said: ‘I know the British public voted to leave but they did not vote for a weaker economy or worsening living standards.

‘London’s business leaders tell me that the PM’s assertion that “no Brexit deal is better than a bad deal” underestimates the colossal damage that “no deal” would have on our economy.

‘If neither an interim or final deal is in place at the end of the two years, the UK would crash out of the EU and off the cliff edge with very significant economic detriment.’