Liam Fox says there is a 60‑40 chance of no-deal Brexit

Fox blames Brussels ‘intransigence’
Fox: heading for a ‘bureaucrats’ Brexit’
Fox: heading for a ‘bureaucrats’ Brexit’
MATT CARDY/GETTY IMAGES

Britain is odds-on to crash out of the European Union without a deal, Liam Fox warns today.

In an interview with The Sunday Times, the international trade secretary put the chances of a no deal departure at “60-40”, squarely blaming the “intransigence” of the European Commission.

Fox accused Eurocrats of harbouring a “theological obsession” with EU rules rather than “economic wellbeing”, which would lead to “only one outcome”.

His intervention comes amid growing fears about the potential collapse in talks. Downing Street refused to say what Theresa May achieved when the prime minister visited the French president, Emmanuel Macron, in the south of France on Friday to discuss her Chequers blueprint for a future relationship with the EU.

Speaking as he completed a trade mission