Michael Gove confirmed that ministers were working on a package to help companies at risk | Tolga Akmen/AFP via Getty Images London to prop up business in case of no-deal Brexit: report Britain is headed for recession alongside Brexit.

Boris Johnson's government is working on plans for a bailout fund to help companies at risk in the case of a no-deal Brexit, the Times reported Saturday.

According to the newspaper the government has drawn up a secret list of big U.K. employers considered the most exposed. Construction and manufacturing are considered the most vulnerable sectors.

Michael Gove, the government minister responsible no-deal Brexit planning, confirmed that ministers are working on a package to help companies at risk.

The prime minister's Brexit war Cabinet is likely to discuss the bailout plans, known as “Operation Kingfisher,” next week.

London faces pressure to contain the economic fallout of a possible no-deal Brexit after statistics Friday showed the country on the brink of a recession.

The British economy contracted by 0.2 percent from April through June, its first quarterly decline since 2012, the Office for National Statistics said. Economists define a recession as two contractions in a row.

The statistics point to weak manufacturing coupled with an end to Brexit-related stockpiling, which outweighed otherwise strong consumer demand. The services sector provided the only bright spot in the statistics, gaining 0.1 percent.

In the medium term, without an economic turnaround, the U.K. may now be heading to an election while in recession.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Sajid Javid played down the figures in a statement, pointing to the global context of “growth slowing in many countries.”