Brexit Secretary David Davis has said he is not certain the UK will secure a withdrawal deal with the EU.
Mr Davis said he was “pretty sure” an agreement could be struck, but left the door open to leaving the bloc without one.
The Brexit Secretary said that “no deal would be better than a punishment deal”.
The remarks come after Chancellor Philip Hammond said that no deal would be “very, very bad” for the UK.
.@DavidDavisMP reassures EU citizens that their rights to stay in UK will be protected after Brexit #marr pic.twitter.com/84kmmeOult
— The Andrew Marr Show (@MarrShow) June 25, 2017
Asked if he was sure there would be a deal cut, Mr Davis told the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show: “I’m pretty sure, I am not 100% sure, you can never be, it’s a negotiation.
“I’m sure there will be a deal, whether it’s the deal I want, which is a free trade agreement, the customs agreement, and so on, I’m pretty sure, but I’m not certain.”
Mr Davis said that part of his portfolio was planning for a bad outcome.
He said: “We cannot have a circumstance where the other side says that they are going to punish you. So, if that happens then there is a walkaway, and we have to plan for that.
What is Michel Barnier like? "He's very French" says @DavidDavisMP #marr pic.twitter.com/UwcyEFC17l
— The Andrew Marr Show (@MarrShow) June 25, 2017
“Half my job is the invisible job of actually planning for all outcomes, the good, the bad, the whole range.”
Asked if he agreed with the Chancellor that no deal would be very, very bad, Mr Davis said: “It would be better than a punishment deal.
“‘I’m being very clear about this. In my job I don’t think out loud, I don’t make guesses. I try to make decisions, you make those based on the data.”
.@DavidDavisMP says at the end of Brexit process, EU will gain a "friendly and comfortable ally, not an irritating member of the club" #marr pic.twitter.com/Qugh5E5Gcb
— The Andrew Marr Show (@MarrShow) June 25, 2017
Mr Davis said Britain would need transitional trade arrangements with the EU for a time after Brexit.
He said: “We think that there will be a transitional period, not that long. I think one to two years is more likely. It will vary. This is something incredibly practical.”
Asked what his counterpart in the Brexit negotiations, Michel Barnier, was like, Mr Davis said: "Well, he's very French. Oh, he's very grand. He's very elegant."
Liberal Democrat Brexit spokesman Tom Brake said: "David Davis inspires about as much confidence as a drunken trapeze artist.
"But it is the country as a whole that will suffer when he comes crashing to the floor.
"These negotiations will affect our lives for decades, but he's only 'pretty sure' of getting a deal. It is simply not good enough."
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