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Peter Hitchens warned a no deal Brexit could force Britain to "beg" to rejoin the European Union because of the potential impact an abrupt exit could have on the UK. The Conservative author, a long-time supporter of plans to quit the bloc, insisted failure to "compromise" in Parliament and in Brussels could leave the country worse off and requesting to become an EU member state once again. Speaking to BBC's Any Questions?, Mr Hitchens said: "I have been a secessionist for many years. In fact, I’ve wanted to leave the European Union when most people now shouting loudest to do so were completely bored by the subject and had no interest in it whatsoever.

"I will stress the real danger from non-tariff barriers resulting from leaving the single market is neither to do with tariffs, it’s to do with those extraordinarily complicated and very difficult to enforce regulations which immediately fay on us as a third country when we leave. "For me, the worst-case scenario is that it’s so bad when we leave that Yellowhammer turns out to have underestimated it that we end up having a Government begging to be allowed back in on worst terms than the ones we already have." Mr Hitches suggested the British Government could still mitigate the risks by agreeing to remain in the single market as a member of the European Economic Area (EEA) like other countries in Europe. He continued: "That’s my worst-case scenario and it could all have been avoided, and could still be avoided if we took the Norway option ion remaining in the EEA and stay within the single market. JUST IN: Brexit Party MEP attacks David Cameron over shock intervention - ‘Frustrate the situation’

Brexit news: Hitches claimed no deal could have the UK "beg" to return in the EU

Brexit news: Hitchens suggested the UK could avoid risks by agreeing to a Norway-style deal

"Having a compromise, which is what all sensible countries do when they have deep disagreements – having a compromise among ourselves and also having a compromise with our neighbours because at the moment there seems to be no mood for rational compromise at all." The so-called Norway model was floated as a potential endgame for the negotiations between London and Brussels in the early stages of the talks but many Brexiteers rejected the proposal as keeping the UK too close to the bloc. Prime Minister Boris Johnson rejected the withdrawal agreement his predecessor negotiated with the EU in November 2018, claiming the controversial Irish backstop could be used to keep the country closely aligned to the single market and the customs union. Mr Johnson demanded the bloc agree to remove the backstop, which was originally designed to avoid the return of a hard border on the island of Ireland, but Brussels and Dublin have insisted any agreement should include an insurance policy to protect the Good Friday Agreement. READ MORE: David Cameron rips apart Boris Johnson's Brexit strategy - 'Not how I would do it'

Brexit news: Boris Johnson said he would rather be "found dead in a ditch" than ask for an extension

Despite MPs earlier this month defeating the Government with a bill aimed at taking the no deal Brexit option off the table, the Prime Minister insisted he would rather be found "dead in a ditch" than ask for a further extension to the deadline. Key EU figures fear that a new extension could strike up a “constitutional crisis” in the UK that engulfs the already convoluted Brexit process. One Brussels source suggested to Express.co.uk that plans are being made for a Supreme Court case that would result in the civil service making the request to delay the UK’s departure from the bloc. They said: “What Article 50 says and requires is that the extension is agreed with the UK, strictly speaking, it is silent on whether there should be a request or where the request should come from.” DON'T MISS: Cameron’s shock so many wanted Brexit as he admits misjudging anti-EU feeling [INSIGHT]

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Brexit news: Boris Johnson set aside extra funding to prepare for no deal

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