As the EU continues to be intransigent over Brexit negotiations, the British government should be fully prepared to walk away with no deal rather than agree to a bad deal.

The government would certainly have the support of the British people. According to a new Sky Data poll a large majority of the public believes that ‘ no deal is better than a bad deal ‘. A massive 74 per cent agree the country should walk away rather than accept a bad, ‘punishment’ deal. Just 26 per cent think ‘any deal is better than no deal’.

As Justice Minister Dominic Raab has said: 'The UK must strive for the very best outcome from these negotiations, but be prepared for all eventualities’ (BBC News, October 2017).

It is worrying, therefore, that the Chancellor, Philip Hammond, has written in The Times that he will only spend money on preparing for a ‘no deal scenario’ just before such a scenario arises. The responsible action to take would be to ensure that we are prepared for a no deal scenario now, and not wait until the last minute.

In fact, it is now time for politicians of all parties to remember that they are there, not to bicker among themselves, but to represent the voters of this country, who voted for a clean break from the domination of the unelected bureaucrats in Europe.

If, because of EU bullying, the UK and EU agree a to a bad deal, then Britain will be saddled with the terms of the deal for decades.

David Hatton

Barrow-in-Furness