How has Jeremy Hunt already managed to spectacularly muck up the job of foreign secretary in so few days?

It is simply galling to have senior MPs lauding the 'unity' of Theresa May’s crack team of cack-handed negotiators. Uniting behind a plan that cannot be used is stupid

It’s amazing how quickly things can change. Just a few short months ago, Brexit was looking fairly disastrous, with negotiations at a standstill, and Boris Johnson was using his platform as foreign secretary to try and spend money on pointless things the country doesn’t need.

And now it’s even worse. A no-deal Brexit is looking increasingly likely, Jeremy Hunt is the new (still gaffe-prone) foreign secretary and Boris is favourite to replace Theresa May.

There’s no need to be alarmed, however, because May’s cabinet is now “united”, according to Hunt, and is “absolutely clear” on what it wants in terms of a Brexit deal.

There’s just a slight hitch: the EU is having none of it.

Hunt’s remarks come a week after the Prime Minister’s Chequers plan was effectively rejected by the EU’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier. Barnier took issue with the UK’s proposed customs deal, but offered May an alternative to the original suggestion.

He also warned against British politicians seeking out support from individual member states, saying: “Anyone who wants to find a sliver of difference between my mandate and what the heads of government say they want are wasting their time, quite frankly.”

So of course, that’s exactly what Hunt has gone and done. The foreign secretary has asked France and Germany to step in and end the deadlock. If they don’t, he said: “There is real chance of no deal by accident.”

Digging one’s heels in and refusing to step down from an untenable position is not accidental.

He went on to state that the probability of no deal is “increasing by the day until we see a change of approach from the European Commission who have this view that they just need to wait and Britain will blink”.

The EU didn’t vote for Brexit. Their obligation is to the states and people who will remain within the bloc after the UK leaves. They have no duty to ensure the British government gets out of the corner into which it’s backed itself. Sovereignty, it’s a great thing, worth it at any price.

Still, at least Barnier has suggested different solutions when turning down the UK’s proposals. On this side of the channel, the cabinet may be sticking together, but it’s chosen the wrong time to stick to its guns.

The government needs to come up with some answers, and quickly. Industry bosses have begun warning of the dire consequences of a no deal, and companies have begun stockpiling in case it comes to pass, based on the advice of ministers. Vital medical supplies are at risk, and experts have been warning for months that changing customs rules could see food left rotting at the border. The Food and Drink Federation’s chief executive, Ian Wright, said this week that Brexit is “shaping up to be the stuff of nightmares”.

Meanwhile, the negotiating nous displayed so far by the UK’s leadership is disquieting, to say the least. The much-touted trade deals set to materialise after Britain escapes the shackles of the EU are looking less and less likely.

It is simply galling to have senior MPs lauding the “unity” of Theresa May’s crack team of cack-handed negotiators. Uniting behind a plan that cannot be used is stupid. There’s no point in being united if it achieves nothing but a warm fuzzy feeling during meetings at number 10.

And while Hunt may be feeling at one with his cabinet colleagues, the unity of the rest of the party is questionable. Take the fact that Boris Johnson has made yet another remarkable bounce back since resigning as foreign secretary and is now favoured by a third of Tories to become the next leader. And so it goes on, they’ll ‘unite’ behind another stupid prospect, who has never really shown any reason for some people’s intransigent support. But this time, it will continue only until Boris gets bored and decides he wants to do something different. With his track record, it wouldn’t be that surprising if he were to replace Barnier in a few years.

However, Hunt and co. may achieve something notable after all. The old saying goes “United we stand, divided we fall”; the government may just collapse under the strain of sticking together to achieve the type of Brexit nobody wanted.