Government under pressure as leaked Operation Yellowhammer papers reveal 100-mile queues in no-deal Brexit Two-thirds of lorries would apparently be turned away at some major British ports

Ministers are under fresh pressure to come clean over their no-deal Brexit plans after it emerged lorries could be backed up at ports for 100 miles.

Leaked documents claim that in some major ports up to two-thirds of vehicles will simply be turned away because drivers are unlikely to have the proper paperwork to trade across borders.

No 10 insists that a no-deal Brexit would not cause total chaos at the ports because hauliers would be given plenty of advice on how to cope with the new rules.

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But critics say the revelation shows Britain is still not ready for no-deal. Last week the Government released a five-page “Operation Yellowhammer” document laying out what it says is the worst-case scenario for no-deal Brexit.

Back of the queue

The dossier said there would be long queues at the port of Dover because of the importance of the Channel crossing, but a “low risk” of disruption at other ports. But a Department for Transport paper leaked to the Financial Times suggests the only reason for that is that the majority of lorries would not be allowed to enter.

The document predicts that at the ports of Holyhead, Liverpool, Portsmouth and Heysham, more than two-thirds of vehicles would not have the proper documentation and would therefore be turned away instantly. At Dover, tailbacks would stretch nearly 100 miles along the motorway because of increased checks on hauliers.

Hitting out at the revelations, Labour MP Albert Owen said: “The UK Government really don’t get it and Johnson/Gove and co are acting in a reckless manner.”

Hilary Benn, chair of Parliament’s Brexit select committee, yesterday wrote to Michael Gove asking for more details of the Government’s no-deal planning. He said: “Since the document you sent me was a five-page summary, I assume that there are more detailed papers supporting these assessments.”

The Prime Minister’s spokesman said: “We have implemented a major campaign to ensure that hauliers can take action to get ready and that they’re able to operate so that trade can continue to move as freely as possible between the UK and Europe after Brexit. If hauliers have the correct documentation, we’re confident that there will be only minimal disruption at the border.”