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Republic 'will face food shortages' in no-deal Brexit

The Commons will vote on Mrs May's Brexit plan on Tuesday
The Commons will vote on Mrs May's Brexit plan on Tuesday The Commons will vote on Mrs May's Brexit plan on Tuesday

THE Republic will face food shortages in the event of a no-deal Brexit, according to leaked British government papers.

Papers obtained by The Times indicated that the Republic could face a 7 per cent drop in its GDP if the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

The UK will see a 5 per cent drop in GDP, the report found.

Britain accounts for 13.1 per cent of Irish exports and 29.1 per cent of imports.

British Prime Minister Theresa May has yet to get her Brexit deal approved by parliament, even though the UK is due to leave the bloc on March 29.

MPs will vote on Mrs May's Brexit plan on Tuesday.

The Prime Minister is under pressure from Tory Brexiteers and the DUP to push the Irish government and EU to drop their backstop proposal which is designed to avoid a hard border post-Brexit.

Former cabinet minister Priti Patel told The Times there was still time for Mrs May to push for "a better deal".

"The paper appears to show the government were well aware Ireland will face significant issues in a no-deal scenario," she said.

"Why hasn't this point been pressed home during the negotiations?"

However, Labour MP Lisa Nandy said "threatening Ireland" was "morally reprehensible".

She raised concerns that Brexiteers are "even contemplating a move which could see stopping trade, including food supplies, being weaponised in this way, particularly given the uncomfortable historical echoes".