GETTY/NC John Redwood said he was "relaxed" about no deal

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The Government is still embroiled in discussions over how big the bill for leaving the bloc will be, leading to delays in thrashing out a deal on trade. Theresa May is now reportedly considering ramping up the negotiations, switching from one round of talks a month to a rolling week-by-week format. But leading Eurosceptics are now calling for the Prime Minister to back her early stance on negotiations when she warned “no deal is better than a bad deal”.

We should call their bluff Julian Lewis MP

MP John Redwood told the Financial Times the slow-moving nature of the negotiations were no surprise and the EU often left vital decisions until “the very last moment”. He said: “I’m quite relaxed. We can trade perfectly well under World Trade Organisation rules.” That option would see Britain operating under WTO rules on things like tariffs and quotas.

However, critics say trading under WTO rules could see increased tariffs and a raft of new regulations. That scenario could even lead to planes being grounded and checks reintroduced on the Irish border, it is claimed. But Tory MP Julian Lewis pointed to how talks between the USA and USSR in the 1980s were able to conclude successfully despite initially breaking down after two years.

Brexit negotiations: UK’s key policy positions Wed, September 13, 2017 Here is a summary of the UK’s main proposals for Brexit Play slideshow Getty Images 1 of 8

He told the paper: “If we did finish without a deal, within a year or two we could end up with a very good deal. “We should call their bluff.” Veteran Eurosceptics are calling for Mrs May to re-ignite her hardline talk from before she was weakened at the general election, arguing she should again threaten to end security co-operation with Brussels if the trade deal is unacceptable.

GETTY The pace of talks with the Michel Barnier is slow