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Brexiteers are lining up a "dream team" to replace Theresa May in case she tries to keep Britain in the customs union with the EU, according to reports.

Tory MPs would have Boris Johnson as their prime minister, Michael Gove as his deputy, and Jacob Rees-Mogg as Chancellor, according to the Sunday Times.

Boris Johnson was said to have told one plotter he was "ready" to be PM and warned the "cavalry is coming", despite also encouraging them to "rally round" the PM.

The news came ahead of ministerial crunch talks on Wednesday and Thursday, with the Conservatives deeply divided over their EU negotiating strategy.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd poured water on the reports however, insisting the Government would come forward with proposals for a final deal which could win broad support.

"I have surprise for the Brexiteers which is the (Cabinet) committee that meets in order to help make these decisions is more united than they think," she told BBC1's The Andrew Marr Show.

"We meet in the committee. We meet privately for discussions. I think that we will arrive at something which suits us all.

"There will be choices to be made within that but we all want the same thing which is to arrive at a deal which works for the UK."

The reported rifts began after Theresa May appeared to leave the door open to some sort of customs agreement with the EU on the final day of her visit to China - even though ministers have said Britain will leave the existing customs union.

Pro-Brexit Tory MPs are concerned Britain would not be free to sign trade deals with other countries if it stayed in the customs union with the EU.

Liam Fox, the International Trade Secretary, has told allies he is ready to quit the Cabinet if the UK stays in a customs union, The Sunday Times reports.

Meanwhile Mr Rees-Mogg accused the Treasury of "fiddling the figures" to force the issue and made clear any such arrangement would be unacceptable to Conservative Brexiteers.

"We need to be free to do deals with the rest of the world. We must be out of the protectionist common external tariff which mainly protects inefficient EU industries at the cost to British consumers," he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.