Working as the Downing Street pollster I tested many messages with the public, including: “A no-deal Brexit will result in shortages of food and medicine.”

By a substantial margin, more voters disagreed with it than agreed with it. Not only that, hearing the argument actually made people more likely to support leaving without a deal than oppose it. It was written off as sensationalism, scaremongering, yet another lie.

This reaction reveals the uphill struggle those arguing against no deal face. Actual, proactive support for such a Brexit outcome is not widespread, with a poll by YouGov showing only about one in five voters chooses it as their preferred option.

But when it becomes a forced choice, between no deal or no Brexit, support for the