BREXITEERS suggested EXTENDING Britain’s transition period out of the EU in a bid to break Cabinet deadlock over customs.

Theresa May’s ex-chief of staff Nick Timothy joined forces with two powerful allies of Michael Gove to urge the PM to back the “max fac” customs option instead of her cherished Customs Partnership.

3 Theresa May favours the Customs Partnership despite being urged to support another option Credit: AFP

The “maximum facilitation” plan would use technology to monitor goods and borders - but critics say it will take too long to set up.

Crucially the trio called for a extension to the exit phase away from Brussels to help her sell the u-turn ahead of a showdown next Tuesday.

The PM is currently pushing for a “customs partnership” where the UK collects import tariffs on Brussels behalf — despite it being rejected six to five by her inner Brexit war committee last week.

Mrs May plans to use a 90 minute meeting of her deadlocked 11 strong panel on Tuesday to railroad through a tweaked version of her complex system.

3 Mrs May's ex-chief of staff Nick Timothy has urged the PM to back the 'max fac' option instead Credit: PA:Press Association

But on Wednesday night signs of a compromise deal had emerged.

Whitehall insiders also said Mrs May was preparing to speak out publicly in a major intervention on Monday in a desperate bid to break the deadlock.

On Wednesday night the PM’s former right hand man Mr Timothy said a way forward was available as “ministers might accept that “max fac” will take longer to be introduced than the current implementation timetable suggests.”

His explosive intervention came just hours after Michael Gove’s close friend Nick Boles also backed extending the final exit date.

3 Two of Michael Gove's allies have asked the PM to extend the transition period Credit: Alamy Live News

The ex-minister who ran Mr Gove's doomed 2016 leadership bid tweeted: “The solution lies in the careful, deliberate development of new systems of customs cooperation, exploiting all of the possibilities of new technology so-called ‘maximum facilitation’.”

But he added as a “compromise” that: “This must not be rushed and will not be ready by the end of the transition in Dec 2020.”

The extension plan was also backed by respected think tank Open Europe that is run by Henry Newman — a former adviser to Mr Gove.

He let rip at the Customs Partnership, branding it “bad politics, bad policy and a bad plan.”

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Mr Newman said Downing Street must make “clear that it would likely mean the UK continuing to pay a substantial proportion of any customs revenues collected at our borders to the EU.”

He added: “Customs Partnership could entail the UK paying very large sums of money to the EU in the long-term - something the Government has so-far ruled out.”

On Wednesday Mrs May faced a Commons mauling on the customs row, after Boris Johnson branded her Partnership plan “crazy” on Monday.

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Mr Johnson insisted his statement was “completely in conformity” with government policy as it is “as yet to be decided.”

In a move that will incense Brexiteers, Leo Varadkar praised the PM’s plan for a customs partnership as a “welcome suggestion”.

The Irish Premier: “The view of the EU is that it isn’t workable in its current form but it is something that perhaps we could make workable.”