No-deal Brexit would create 'travel chaos' with cross-border services to continent disrupted

Eurostar, which runs around 40 direct services a day, via the Channel Tunnel, from London to Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam and other destinations, only currently holds a UK licence. It would have to apply for new licences, certificates and authorisations from the EU rail regulator to continue services.

The Government advice states: "Passengers using cross-border services are responsible for ensuring that their insurance and ticket terms and conditions are sufficient to cover possible disruption."

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It also explains that the UK is seeking bilateral arrangements with France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Ireland to "facilitate the continued smooth functioning of cross-border rail services".

The notice adds: "Given the large amount of trade and citizens travelling on these services it is in both sides' interests to agree to such arrangements."

Dominic Raab, the Brexit Secretary, sought to reassure travellers, saying they should not put off buying rail tickets as Britain would work with its EU counterparts to ensure they were able to travel and goods could be moved.

But opposition politicians were unconvinced.

Pro-EU Labour peer Lord Adonis, the former Transport Secretary, said any severing of the vital train link between Britain and Europe would hurt thousands of travellers and businesses, who wanted to trade with the continent.

“Brexit,” he declared, “will bring about travel chaos."

Christine Jardine for the Liberal Democrats noted: “Eurostar is a great example of European co-operation and engineering prowess. The fact that no-deal could put it out of service is symbolic of the mess the Government have made of Brexit.”

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Among the contingency papers, one warns that the Single Electricity Market on the island of Ireland could cease to operate, hitting consumers on both sides of the border.

Mr Raab stressed even if the bilateral co-operation between London and Dublin on energy did not continue, the UK would be prepared, saying: "We have got interconnectors and the regulatory measures that the Government can take to make sure that Northern Ireland maintains the energy supply it needs."

In response to the technical papers’ release, Labour’s Sir Keir Starmer said UK ministers had “barely scratched the surface” as to what would be necessary in the event of a no-deal and that their contingency planning “won’t reassure anyone”.

Stephen Gethins for the SNP said the latest documents should serve as a "wake-up call" to avoid a hard Brexit.

"If the Prime Minister is serious about protecting the rights of people in the UK, rather than pandering to the extreme Brexiteers within her own party, the UK Government must commit to remaining in the single market and the customs union," said the Fife MP.

Meanwhile, Theresa May tried to reassure her colleagues that she would never agree to a backstop – the arrangement should a trade deal not happen – which "traps" the UK permanently in the customs union.

Mr Raab echoed the point, saying: "The backstop would have to be finite, it would have to be short and it would have to be time-limited in order for it to be supported here.

"What we cannot do is see the UK locked in via the backdoor to a customs union arrangement, which would leave us in an indefinite limbo. That would not be leaving the EU," he declared.

The pledge came amid speculation over possible ministerial resignations if the Prime Minister gave too much ground ahead of a crunch Brussels summit next week.

European Commissioner Guenther Oettinger admitted it “does appear possible there will be a breakthrough" at the October 17/18 summit, confirming Whitehall optimism that a deal is near on the backstop for the Irish border.

• READ MORE: Theresa May insists she would never agree to Brexit deal that 'trapped' UK into permanent backstop

Chancellor Philip Hammond became the first senior Government figure to suggest that the backstop would "probably" have to come into effect for a period.

In Northern Ireland, Nigel Dodds, the Democratic Unionists’ deputy leader, said he expected developments over the weekend "in terms of the Government's own position and the Cabinet".

The DUP is adamant it will not agree to anything which results in the imposition of extra customs or regulatory checks between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.

Sammy Wilson, its Brexit spokesman, urged Mrs May to show the EU negotiators “the door.”

He added: "She has declared herself to be a Unionist, she has repeated that time and time again, she knows the consequences if she walks away from that promise, not just for Northern Ireland because, of course, she will open a Pandora's box in Scotland as well.”

Yet the EU is mounting fierce resistance to any backstop time-limit while Leave-backing ministers are insistent the end of the arrangement should be more precisely defined than the vague term "temporary".

Simon Coveney, Ireland’s Foreign Minister, insisted the backstop should be able to remain in place "unless and until something better comes along". He said having a time-limited backstop would be a "deal breaker".