Jeremy Corbyn has said that Theresa May‘s cross-party Brexit meetings are not “genuine talks” but instead ”designed to play for time”, in a letter sent to the prime minister on Friday.

Mrs May made the offer to enter talks with other party leaders on Wednesday, in an effort to break the Brexit stalemate currently gripping the House of Commons.

But the Labour Party leader has refused to accept her offer unless the prime minister agrees to rule out a no-deal Brexit.

The prime minister has resisted doing so, despite criticism from her own back benches.

In his highly critical letter Mr Corbyn said that MPs who had met with Mrs May were left disappointed by her refusal to discard the terms of her ”comprehensively rejected deal”.

He also criticised the prime minister’s refusal to consider “a new customs union with the EU” and said that the government “must now be open to other options”.

Mr Corbyn wrote: “Your own chancellor recognises that it is possible to rule out ‘no deal’. which is why he told businesses that parliament would stop ‘no deal’. The government can take a lead and rule out ‘no deal’ now, in the process ending the grotesque waste of £4.2bn on ‘no deal’ planning.

“It is also not encouraging that, as well as refusing to take ‘no deal’ off the table, No10 spokespeople and cabinet members have so far ruled out any movement on a new customs union with the EU, which would be necessary for a new deal to win support in parliament.”

Downing Street’s refusal to budge on its so-called red lines “reinforces the view that these are not genuine talks”, the Labour leader added.

Liberal Democrat leader Vince Cable, SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford and Plaid Plaid Cymru’s Liz Saville-Roberts were among the parliamentarians who met with Mrs May following her offer.

But there seems to be little progress on a fresh Brexit plan after the Conservative government’s Withdrawal Agreement was rejected by 230 votes in the Commons.

The prime minister remains caught between two warrring factions of her own party.

Adding to her problems, Nick Boles, an influential Conservative MP, warned on Friday that members of the government would resign to support a cross-party members bill aimed at preventing a no-deal Brexit.

The MP told the BBC that non-Cabinet ministers had told him that they would would quit if required to vote against a bill allowing MPs to demand Article 50 be extended for fresh talks with Brussels.

“There is a bandwagon rolling, it’s got a lot of momentum behind it and I very much hope that any MP who shares my view that a no-deal Brexit would be a disaster, will jump on board,” he said.

The bill is due to be tabled by Yvette Cooper on Monday.

Meanwhile, the plan for further cross-party talks appears to have fizzled out.

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