Brexit: MPs could be denied full analysis of economic damage from a no-deal departure

No 10 suggests it will only provide assessment of the impact of the agreement that Theresa May expects to strike – even though her alternative is crashing out

MPs could be denied a full analysis of the economic damage from crashing out of the EU without a deal when they vote later this year, No 10 says.

Parliament may only be given an assessment of the impact of the agreement that Theresa May expects to strike, her spokesman said – despite her insistence that rejecting it will mean leaving with no deal.

The stance comes despite the prime minister describing the Treasury’s current analysis – predicting a 7.7 per cent hit to GDP and an £80bn hole in the public finances – as a “work in progress”, implying it would be completed.

Asked what advice would be given to MPs, the spokesman refused several times to confirm it would include an up-to-date impact report on a no-deal Brexit.

“Once a deal has been negotiated, then the government will provide parliament with meaningful analysis on the deal ahead of the vote,” he said.

When asked if that meant an analysis would be provided “just on the deal” – rather than on a no-deal exit – the spokesman replied: “On the deal – yes.”

The comments were attacked by Wes Streeting, a Labour supporter of the People’s Vote campaign, who said: “The government’s approach to Brexit is descending into farce.

“It seems Theresa May won’t even let our sovereign parliament see the gory details for themselves before deciding whether or not to jump off the cliff edge. So much for ‘taking back control’.”

And Andrew Adonis, the former Labour cabinet minister who backs the anti-Brexit Best for Britain group, said the public would conclude the government had “something to hide”.

“The government cannot duck and weave on this. If the prime minister believes in her deal and believes in her negotiation, give us all the facts.”

The controversy has blown up as the government publishes a series of technical notices on the likely impacts for businesses and consumers of a no-deal departure.

They have already warned of more costly credit card payments to buy EU products and that British citizens living abroad could lose access to payments from their bank accounts.

However, the only forecast of the overall economic impact of no deal was leaked in January, then confirmed by the Treasury – which Ms May has now insisted is incomplete.

The Treasury has also calculated a Canada-style free trade agreement would cut growth cut by 5 per cent over 15 years, while staying inside the EU single market would reduce output by 2 per cent.

The all-party Commons Treasury Committee has demanded an exhaustive list of statistics before the “meaningful vote”, from both the government and the Bank of England.

The analysis must consider both the proposed deal and a no-deal scenario, with each compared with a “status quo” of staying in the EU, it said in July.

No crucial Commons vote is now expected before the winter, after David Lidington, the de facto deputy prime minister, acknowledged that hopes of a deal with the EU by the original deadline of October were fading fast.

Instead, an emergency summit is possible in November – if any progress has been made behind the scenes – or there will be a last-gasp push for an agreement in December.