What is really going on in politics? Get our daily email briefing straight to your inbox Sign up Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Invalid Email

Theresa May is summoning her entire Cabinet to her secretive country retreat in a move that could make or break Brexit - and her government.

Tea party is likely to give way to pyjama party as warring Tory ministers drag talks at Chequers late into the night.

It'll be anything but a happy occasion. Tories are already at war in public and it's the biggest Tory showdown of her premiership.

The issues are tricky to grasp - but the result will be felt in the pockets of millions of hard-working mums, dads, students and workers.

And it could all prompt a string of resignations - or even a leadership battle.

Here's a quick explanation of what's going to happen.

What is Chequers?

(Image: www.alamy.com)

Chequers is the stuffy 16th Century stately home in Buckinghamshire that is the retreat of the Prime Minister of the day.

It was used as a rural bolthole by wartime leader Winston Churchill, who made morale-boosting broadcasts to the nation from its rooms.

Prime Ministers down the years have hosted foreign leaders in its luxury.

Margaret Thatcher entertained American president Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, while Tony Blair welcomed US president Bill Clinton.

When is the Chequers summit?

(Image: Jay Allen)

The Cabinet is being summoned to Chequers from 9.30am on Friday 6 July.

Ministers have reportedly been told to surrender their phones to prevent leaks.

They have also reportedly been warned the meeting could drag on for more than 12 hours until 10pm.

Who's going?

(Image: AFP)

The entire Cabinet of more than 20 ministers is expected to be at the summit.

This is more than Theresa May's 11-strong inner circle, the Brexit 'war Cabinet', that met at Chequers last time.

Importantly, the full Cabinet is thought to have more of a 'soft Brexit' majority than the inner circle. This could change the result.

What's this all about?

(Image: REX/Shutterstock)

There's lots of detail (see below!) but it all comes down to this.

Do we want Hard Brexit or Soft Brexit?

Tories are painfully, irreversibly split on whether to cut ties with the EU or hold them close. With big decisions needed by October, Theresa May is going to have to come off the fence and - at least a bit - choose one side or the other.

What is actually getting discussed?

(Image: Parliamentlive.tv)

Ministers are being asked to sign off a 'White Paper' on Brexit.

White Papers are a document, traditionally printed on (you guessed it) white paper, that represent the view of the government.

The White Paper will set out more detail of what kind of relationship Britain wants with the EU after we leave properly on 31 December 2020.

Once it's signed off, Theresa May is planning a tour of European capitals to sell the idea to leaders before EU bureaucrats begin their summer holiday.

Why is customs so important?

(Image: AFP)

The EU has a 'customs union'.

This means the 28 states trade EU goods for free - and set an equal tariff on non-EU goods. For example, US car imports to the EU are taxed at 10%.

Being in this customs union helps the UK, because the EU is our biggest trading partner and it prevents lorry checks at the border.

Theresa May wants the UK to leave it because otherwise, Britain will have to follow EU rules and cannot strike trade deals around the world.

But not only has this created a headache of how to keep the border open between Northern Ireland (UK) and the Republic (EU).

It's also opened up a huge row with Brussels, because it'll have to solve the key riddle about Brexit - hard, or soft.

So the Prime Minister has been drawing up a ready-made plan for future customs which will be at the heart of the White Paper.

What are our options?

(Image: PA)

At first, Britain was looking at two options.

Customs partnership: Liked by Remainers, branded "idiotic" by Brexiteers. Britain would stick close to EU tariffs on imports and collect them on behalf of the EU. If the UK tariff is lower than the EU one, firms would be able to reclaim the difference.

Maximum Facilitation - 'Max Fac': Liked by Brexiteers, but could cost firms £20bn a year. Would keep the UK separate from Brussels rules. High-tech tracking devices would try to cut bureaucracy. E.g. "Trusted” firms could pay tariffs at regular intervals, not every time they cross a border.

Now ministers are set to consider this 'third way':

Facilitated Customs Arrangement: A compromise. The UK would leave blanket EU tariffs, allowing us to set our own import duties. But if goods are "unfinished" or destined to end up in the EU, Britain would still collect EU tariffs on Brussels' behalf. And crucially, the UK would keep many of the same rules - "regulatory alignment" - as the EU on standards of goods.

Who's not happy about it?

(Image: Jay Allen)

David Davis, for a start. In an 11th-hour letter to Theresa May, the Brexit Secretary reportedly warned the EU will simply reject the plan.

And Brexiteer Tories are furious - after fears emerged the 'FCA' will make it much harder to secure a US trade deal.

Under the plan, Britain would closely mirror EU standards on goods. The problem is, the US uses very different rules so would be disadvantaged.

Seven Brexiteer Cabinet ministers held quickly-leaked crisis talks the night before the summit in a bid to water down Theresa May's positiong.

Tory Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg told the Telegraph: “If this is correct this is not Brexit. The common rulebook means that we are essentially a vassal state."

How will the meeting end?

(Image: Jay Allen)

Late, and quite possibly dramatically.

If ministers still refuse to sign up to the plan, they could resign.

If that happens, expect late-night TV statements in the Buckinghamshire countryside or interviews squished around Saturday's World Cup clash.

This could in turn trigger a Tory leadership battle if 48 MPs declare they have no confidence in Theresa May.

Downing Street is braced for resignations.

A source told the Politico website No10 has already drawn up an "emergency reshuffle plan" - adding anyone who quits will have to take a taxi the 40 miles back to London.

However, it might be that they all reach agreement - and keep schtum about what they're not happy with.

After all, David Davis has repeatedly threatened to resign, and by now it seems as if he's crying wolf.

And previous showdowns have repeatedly ended in "fudge" where no one is happy, but no one is upset enough to quit either.

There's even a 'survival kit'

Labour issued a mocking 'Cabinet survival kit' with a can to kick down the road - and a packet of fudge for if Theresa May continues to fudge her options.

Shadow Brexit minister Jenny Chapman said: "Tory infighting over Brexit has got so serious Labour has been left with little choice but to try and offer ministers a helping hand before this latest peace summit.

“But there is a serious point to this.

"Every single day the Government wastes arguing with itself puts jobs and the economy at risk and increases the chances of the UK crashing out without a deal.

"No deal would be the worst possible outcome for our country."

What happens next?

(Image: REX/Shutterstock)

Once the White Paper is secured, Theresa May must move quickly to win the support of EU leaders.

If it is rejected out of hand by the EU, it presents the Prime Minister with a huge headache with just weeks of negotiating time left.

A deal must be agreed with Brussels by the European Council summit in October to leave enough time for EU parliaments to ratify it.

Even then, government leaks have suggested no customs plan will be ready in time for December 2020, when a transition period runs out.

So whatever the outcome, we have a long and extremely bumpy road ahead.