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Jeremy Hunt has issued a stark warning to Tory MPs that there is risk of "losing Brexit" altogether if they fail to back Theresa May's deal in the crunch Commons vote on Tuesday.

Speaking amid last-ditch negotiations in Brussels, the Foreign Secretary said there was now "wind in the sails" of the opponents of Brexit and that it would be "devastating" for the Conservatives if they failed to deliver on their commitment to take Britain out of the EU.

His warning came after Brexiteer Tories and their DUP allies warned the Government was heading for an "inevitable" defeat on Tuesday unless it can secure last minute concessions from the EU on the Northern Ireland backstop.

But with little sign of a breakthrough in talks in Brussels, Mr Hunt said MPs could not "wish away the parliamentary arithmetic" and that any alternative to Mrs May's deal agreed by the Commons was likely to be "less appealing" to Brexiteers.

Mr Hunt made the comments ahead of the second "meaningful vote" on the PM's deal in the Commons following January's overwhelming defeat.

The Prime Minister had been pinning her hopes on securing legally binding changes to the backstop to convince MPs that the UK cannot be tied indefinitely to EU rules against its wishes.

But with time running out, the chances of that happening appeared to be receding.

Mr Hunt warned the Conservatives are in "perilous waters" as the clock ticks down to Brexit.

"People worry about us being trapped in the customs union by the backdoor but we could end up in the customs union by the front door if we get this wrong," he told BBC1's The Andrew Marr Show.

"We have an opportunity now to leave on March 29 or shortly thereafter and it is very important we grasp that opportunity because there is wind in the sails of people trying to stop Brexit.

"If you want to stop Brexit you only need to do three things - kill this deal, get an extension and then have a second referendum.

"Within three weeks people could have two of those three things and quite possibly the third one could be on the way through the Labour Party. We're in very perilous waters."

Mr Hunt said that if Brexit was derailed, voters would hold the Conservatives responsible for failing to deliver on the outcome of the 2016 referendum.

"They are going to say there was a party that promised to deliver Brexit, we put them into Number 10 and they failed. The consequences for us as a party would be devastating," he said.

"This is a very important moment for us. There is a risk and a possibility that we end up losing Brexit if we get the votes wrong in the next couple of weeks."

Shadow chancellor John McDonnell told the programme shortly before Mr Hunt that his party would support a short extension of Article 50.

Meanwhile, the former Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab also warned the Government is in a "precarious" position over Brexit.

Mr Raab, a Brexiteer who quit over Theresa May's deal, warned its difficulties would be exacerbated if it sought to delay Brexit or to go back on previous commitments.

Asked on Sky News's Sophy Ridge on Sunday programme if Mrs May would still be Prime Minister by Christmas, he said: "I don't know. She has said she is going to step down. I would like to be able to see her do that in a way which is in terms of her own choosing.

"I think the Government has found itself in a precarious situation, particularly I think if the Government extends Article 50 or tries to reverse the Brexit promises that we have made, I think that situation would get even trickier."

However Health Secretary Matt Hancock denied the Government is heading for an "inevitable" defeat in the Commons Brexit vote.

Mr Hancock urged Tory MPs to get behind Mrs May's deal, warning the country would be plunged into uncertainty if it was defeated.

"It is in the gift of MPs to get on and deliver on Brexit," he told Sophy Ridge.

"In the event on Tuesday of this vote not going through nobody knows what would happen. There would be total uncertainty.

"The approach we need to take on Tuesday is to get together and vote to deliver on the result (of the referendum) and then we won't need to have any votes on what happens next.

"In many ways the EU believes that it would be in the driving seat if this vote doesn't go through which is not where anybody wants to be."