Theresa May will come under intense pressure from leading Brexiters on Monday to ditch her Chequers proposals and back a free trade deal with the EU instead as she faces a bruising cabinet showdown in the wake of the disastrous Salzburg summit.
The former Brexit secretary David Davis and leading Eurosceptic Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg are among those backing a report by the Institute of Economic Affairs which is expected to set out an alternative plan for a hard Brexit departure from the EU.
The launch, attended by a series of high-profile Brexiters, comes just hours before the prime minister comes face to face with her cabinet for the first time since her humiliation at the hands of EU leaders who rejected key elements of her Chequers plan.
Immigration will be one of the key points of discussion at the hastily arranged meeting a week before Tory conference at which May is expected to argue for strict controls to reassure Brexiters and boost her leadership in the face of open revolt.
Several cabinet ministers have privately expressed dismay at the fate of May’s Chequers proposals and are understood to be advocating a move towards a Canada-style trade deal. At least two are thought to be prepared to raise the issue directly.
One cabinet source said: “Chequers in its present form is a non-starter for the EU so it’s time for us to look at the alternatives. We should at least look again at the prospect of a free trade agreement.”
However, the Brexit secretary, Dominic Raab, was unequivocal on Sunday that such a proposal was “off the table” as it would mean reverting to the EU’s backstop solution for Northern Ireland which would create a hard border down the Irish sea.
“People need to read the small print, not just of our proposals, but the EU’s proposals, because what they’re suggesting is not just a free trade deal but for us to stay locked in, or for Northern Ireland specifically to stay locked into the customs union,” he said.
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