Jeremy Corbyn urges Boris Johnson to reveal 'full' no-deal Brexit analysis amid leak row
3 min read
Jeremy Corbyn has called on Boris Johnson to publish Whitehall's analysis of the impact of a no-deal Brexit "in full".
The Labour leader said the Prime Minister "can't be trusted" after ministers downplayed a leaked Cabinet Office dossier warning of potential disruption to food and fuel supplies if Britain leaves the EU without a deal.
Mr Johnson on Monday acknowledged there would be "bumps in the road" if Britain left the EU without a deal on 31 October, but he said he had "no doubt" that Britain could be ready for such an outcome.
The 'Operation Yellowhammer' documents - reportedly drawn up this month and now at the centre of a bitter leak row after they were passed to The Sunday Times - included warnings that Britain's social care system could struggle to cope with rising inflation and outlined of months of possible disruption at UK ports.
But Mr Corbyn said the dossier had made "the chaos and damage that will be caused by Boris Johnson’s no-deal Brexit crystal clear".
Speaking ahead of trip to Stevenage to meet businesses, the Labour leader added: "If the Government wants to be believed that it doesn’t represent the real impact, it must publish its most recent assessments today in full.
"Boris Johnson’s denials can’t be trusted, and will do nothing to give businesses or consumers any confidence that the dire state of affairs described in these documents aren’t right around the corner."
And he argued: "What we know for sure is that this government is wilfully committed to a policy that the Prime Minister and the Cabinet know will destroy jobs, push up food prices in the shops and open up our NHS to a takeover by US private companies.
"That is a price that Boris Johnson is willing to pay because it won’t be him and his wealthy donors who pay it – it will be the rest of us."
The leak of the 'Operation Yellowhammer' documents has already sparked anger in Number 10, with a source pointing the finger at disgruntled members of the previous government.
"It has been deliberately leaked by a former minister in an attempt to influence discussions with EU leaders," they claimed.
"Those obstructing preparation are no longer in Government, £2 billion of extra funding has already made available and Whitehall has been stood up to actually do the work through the daily ministerial meetings."
Michael Gove, the Cabinet minister leading the Government's efforts to plan for a no-deal outcome, meanwhile said the files were "an attempt in the past to work out what the very, very worst situation would be, so we could take steps to mitigate that".
'ENERGY'
Mr Corbyn's call for the Government's no-deal impact assessments to be made public came as Mr Johnson told European Council President Donald Tusk that the UK would still work with "energy and determination" to achieve an agreement with the EU.
But he told the EU Council chief that the Irish backstop in the current withdrawal agreement must be "replaced" if MPs are to get behind a Brexit deal before 31 October.
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