The marathon meeting of the Brexit ‘war cabinet’ at Chequers was called to plot a way forward after Tory tensions went public. (Picture: PA)

Theresa May is facing the threat of a Commons rebellion on staying in the customs union.

The threat came following an eight hour gathering of senior Cabinet members, who met to find a united front on EU withdrawal.

Anti-mask protest leader is suspended nurse who compared lockdown to the Holocaust

The marathon meeting of the Brexit ‘war cabinet’ at Chequers was called to plot a way forward after Tory tensions went public.

However the Prime Minister was threatened with a fresh challenge to her authority from pro-Europe Conservative backbenchers.


Former minister and leading Tory rebel Anna Soubry insisted she had cross-party support for a new amendment to the Government’s trade bill.



She said it would mandate the UK to form a customs union with Brussels after Brexit.

Theresa May is facing the threat of a Commons rebellion on staying in the customs union. (Picture: EPA)

The move presents an increased danger to Mrs May because Labour’s shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry said the party now backed a customs union that would look ‘pretty much like’ the current one after withdrawal.

Ms Soubry said she had widespread support for her amendment.

London could face new coronavirus restrictions 'within days'

Speaking on Twitter, she said: ‘It would be in the national interest if the Government & official Opposition also backed it.’

The Chequers ‘away day’ saw the inner Cabinet committee discuss the impact of Brexit on the automotive sector, agri-foods and digital trade.

It also discussed the overall future economic partnership the UK is seeking to reach with the EU.

Mrs May will set out the Brexit agenda in a major speech next week following a meeting of the full Cabinet.

Former minister and leading Tory rebel Anna Soubry insisted she had cross-party support for a new amendment to the Government’s trade bill. (Picture: Johnny Armstead/ REX/ Shutterstock)

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is set to unveil a competing vision of how Brexit should work in what is being billed as a significant address on Monday.

The move comes after some backbenchers called for more clarity from the leadership.

Sex attacker tried to blame imaginary identical twin for his assault

Ms Thornberry made it clear Labour wanted close ties to Brussels, telling LBC: ‘Technically, because we are leaving the European Union we can’t be in the customs union that we are in now.

‘So, we leave and then we have to negotiate a new agreement. That we think is likely to be a customs union that will look pretty much like the current customs union.’

The senior Labour figure also said the UK could join forces with Brussels to negotiate trade deals with third countries after Brexit, rather than make its own global arrangements.

She said: ‘If we were, during these negotiations, to say to the European Union, if you want to negotiate with third parties, with third countries, we could be connected to that agreement, and it would be to the advantage of Europe that you have a great big economy like Britain as part of your negotiations.’

The trade bill is not expected to be debated by MPs for a number of weeks.