Jeremy Hunt threatens to withhold part of £39bn exit bill from the European Union The Tory leader contender said he wouldn’t pay more than was legally owed to Brussels

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Jeremy Hunt has declared that he would refuse to pay some of the £39bn bill it would cost the UK to leave the European Union.

The Conservative leader contender said if negotiations with Brussels failed, he would not “not hand over a penny more than is legally required of us”.

Mr Hunt, who is up against Boris Johnson in the battle to become the next Prime Minister, also said he would deliver a speech on Monday which will “turbocharge” plans for a no-deal exit from the bloc on 31 October.

Not a penny more

Speaking to The Sunday Times, he said: “As a businessman I always paid my bills. That being said, if we leave without a deal I will not hand over a penny more than is legally required of us.

“Anyone who thinks I am going to write a blank cheque to the European Union is sorely mistaken.”

Mr Hunt said both he and Mr Johnson wish to change Britain’s withdrawal agreement, but noted that he would not exit from the EU on Halloween if a deal was close.

We need a tough and skilled negotiator, not empty rhetoric Jeremy Hunt

He added: “We will know by the beginning of October if it’s going to be possible to negotiate a deal that we are going to be able to get through the House of Commons. If it isn’t, I’ll take us out without a deal.”

Canadian PM

The Sunday Times reported that Mr Hunt had signed up former Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper to lead his Brexit negotiating team.

The team is also set to include Department of International Trade negotiator Crawford Falconer and ex-health minister of Canada Rona Ambrose.

“To break the impasse with the European Union we need a tough and skilled negotiator, not empty rhetoric,” Mr Hunt told the paper.

“In Crawford Falconer you have someone who is respected as the toughest trade negotiator in the world. I’m good personal friends with Rona Ambrose. These are people who know how to get a tough deal.”

New negotiating team

Mr Harper successfully negotiated a free-trade pact with the EU, while Ms Ambrose worked on the North American Free Trade agreement after Donald’s Trump election.

Meanwhile, Mr Johnson is assembling a Brexit team led by Sir Eddie Lister, The Telegraph reports.

It has also been reported that chief Brexit negotiator Olly Robbins will quit his role shortly after the new prime minister takes up his post at the end of July.

His departure is the latest in a wave of top civil servants dealing with Brexit who have announced they will resign rather than take on the challenge of delivering Brexit within 100 days under the new leader.

Additional reporting by Press Association