'This is not Dunkirk': Cabinet minister Liam Fox claims no-deal Brexit would not be 'national suicide'

'I think no deal would damage our economy, I’ve been frank about that, but I think it’s survivable. I think no Brexit, politically, is a disaster'

Cabinet minister Liam Fox has said a no-deal Brexit would not be “national suicide”, as he claimed: “This is not Dunkirk”.

The international trade secretary made the lukewarm remarks about a disorderly exit as Theresa May prepares to claim during a speech in the midlands that no Brexit now appears more likely than a no-deal scenario on the eve of the crucial vote on her deal.

“I don’t regard no deal as national suicide,” he told the BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

Making the reference to the mass evacuation of allied soldiers during the Second World War, Dr Fox continued: “This is not Dunkirk, this is leaving the European Union. We need to find ways if there is no deal for mitigating that but the best way to do it is to accept the deal the prime minister has negotiated.

“I think no deal would damage our economy, I’ve been frank about that, but I think it’s survivable. I think no Brexit, politically, is a disaster from which we might not recover”.

Dr Fox also warned that a no Brexit could “cause such a chasm between parliament and the people” that it would “be very difficult you would not get the sort of populism coming into the United Kingdom you’ve seen in continental Europe”.

But Dominic Grieve, a prominent Conservative MP, said that while he had “great respect” for Dr Fox, he said: “I’m afraid I disagree with his analysis about what the consequences of a no-deal Brexit.

“It would be national suicide, it would lead to the break up of the United Kingdom for starters… the economic damage which it will do to us will be immense, so that the most vulnerable in our society will be those who suffer most as a consequence.”

The comments from the international trade secretary also comes as Ms May is expected to reveal “assurances” from the EU in relation to the contentious issue of the backstop - the EU’s insurance policy against a hard border in Northern Ireland.

Dr Fox added: “The prime minister will seek to make a statement to the House of Commons today outlining the assurances she had from the European Union following discussions over the last few days and I hope the best way forward is to support the government’s agreement because it delivers on the referendum result and does so in a way that minimises the risks to our economy.”