UK authorities are drawing up plans to charter a flotilla of supply ships to ferry in emergency food and medicines in the event of a “no-deal” Brexit next March, according to FT, which reports that the move was “greeted with disbelief at a stormy meeting of Theresa May’s cabinet on Tuesday.”

The cabinet was told that the heavily used Dover-Calais route could quickly become blocked by new customs controls on the French side, forcing Britain to seek alternative ways of bringing in “critical supplies”.

The warnings about the consequences of a disorderly British exit from the EU came at a cabinet meeting which saw ministers divided into two camps over how to unlock a deal in Brussels. One witness said there was “an almighty row”.

The prospect of Britain facing shortages of perishable food and medicines provided a bleak backdrop to the cabinet discussions, as Mrs May urged her ministers to back her attempts to secure a breakthrough. –FT

Theresa May announced weekly cabinet discussions on preparations for Brexit, deal or no-deal, saying “The government’s priority is to secure a deal.”

May’s de facto deputy, David Lidington, told the cabinet that under a no-deal Brexit, the Dover-Calais route would be significantly crippled – running at just 12-25% of normal capacity for up to six months.

“Whatever we do at our end, the French could cause chaos if they carry out checks at their end,” said one UK official. “Dover-Calais would be the obvious pinch point. The French would say they were only applying the rules.”

If Britain left the EU under World Trade Organization rules, the UK and EU would be in different customs jurisdictions and would be expected to carry out checks on trade across the English Channel.

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