Boris Johnson was today accused of playing a “stupid blame game” by European Council president Donald Tusk after Downing Street suggested that the plug could be pulled on Brexit talks within days.
On a disastrous day for hopes of an 11th-hour deal, the Prime Minister clashed with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and told her that the EU was making an agreement “essentially impossible”.
Cabinet unease at No 10’s high-risk tactics emerged, with Northern Ireland Secretary Julian Smith denouncing a reported threat to withdraw security co-operation from some EU states as “unacceptable”.
According to an account from No 10 sources of the 30-minute phone conversation with Mrs Merkel this morning, she told Mr Johnson that a breakthrough was “overwhelmingly unlikely” unless he bowed to demands that Northern Ireland should stay in the Customs Union permanently.
Downing Street political sources painted the call as “a clarifying moment”, alleging that Mrs Merkel’s demands amounted to an Irish veto over the province that could never be agreed.
That enraged Mr Tusk who addressed the Prime Minister in public, tweeting: “@Boris Johnson, what’s at stake is not winning some stupid blame game. At stake is the future of Europe and the UK as well as the security and interests of our people. You don’t want a deal, you don’t want an extension, you don’t want to revoke, quo vadis [where are you going]?”
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman would not confirm the account of the Merkel/Johnson conversation but agreed that talks were “at a critical point”. The spokesman rejected Mr Tusk’s comments, saying: “It is not us talking in that language.”
A senior Downing Street source told the Standard that the impasse could be fatal to the talks. “Obviously the UK Government cannot negotiate on the basis that the EU has a veto on whether Northern Ireland can ever leave,” the source said.
In Berlin, a Merkel government spokesman confirmed the two leaders had a phone call, but expressed irritation that No 10 sources had leaked the conversation, saying pointedly: “As usual, we do not report such confidential conversations.”
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In an interview with the Evening Standard, the Prime Minister said Britain is “pedal to the metal” on no-deal Brexit preparations.
He said: “We’re very confident we will be ready ... But I want to stress it is not an outcome that we seek, nor is it an outcome we think is necessary. What we want is to see our friends and partners coming together to address our suggestions and find a way forward together.”
At this morning’s Cabinet, which was dominated by a report on UK readiness for a no-deal exit, at least two ministers, Mr Smith and Culture Secretary Nicky Morgan, were said to have expressed unease over an explosive memo written by one of the Prime Minister’s staff — allegedly controversial senior adviser Dominic Cummings — which predicted negotiations “will probably end this week”.
It spoke of punishing EU countries that backed Parliament’s call for a Brexit delay rather than no-deal by sending them “to the bottom of the queue” and warned: “If this deal dies in the next few days, then it won’t be revived.”
The notes, sent to The Spectator journalist James Forsyth, who protected the author’s identity, were said to make clear that UK defence and security co-operation would be affected if Brexit was not delivered.
Mr Smith made clear his anger on Twitter, writing: “I am clear that any threat on withdrawing security co-operation with Ireland is unacceptable. This is not in the interest of NI or the Union.”
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps also distanced himself from the threats of punishment.
Labour’s shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer claimed: “This is yet another cynical attempt by Number 10 to sabotage the negotiations ... [Boris Johnson’s] strategy from day one has been for a no-deal Brexit.”
