He said: “A no-deal could be disastrous.

“It could be less than 90 days away. The impact would be particularly bad for farmers. Tariffs of 40 per cent could be slapped on meat exports to the EU and subject to strict inspection regimes by the French. There would be holdups and delays at Calais and we could lose the benefits of leaving the common agricultural policy.”

Despite Ms May having told Tory MPs she would not fight the next election and the pressure on her to announce her resignation after Britain leaves the EU in March, Mr Gove predicted that she will still be prime minister this time next year and said he thought more highly of her now than he did when the pair were cabinet colleagues in David Cameron’s government.

He said: “I respect her more now. She has shown an amazing deal of resilience, integrity and determination. I realise now just how difficult the top job is so when the vote of confidence came I energetically and enthusiastically supported her.”