Chief Secretary to the Treasury: ‘UK can afford to walk away from the EU with no deal thanks to strong economy’ New Chief Secretary to the Treasury says Government will take advantage of 17 year low in borrowing to spend extra money on public services.

Britain can afford to walk away from the EU without a deal because it will be able to borrow huge sums of money to cover “public priorities” such as the NHS and police numbers, according to the new Chief Secretary to the Treasury.

Rishi Sunak said the country could take advantage now as the UK is at a 17 year low in borrowing. He denied the idea that the treasury will dish out “blank cheques” and there was “no need for a magic money tree”, saying there should be value for money.

“We can afford this, because there has been some very careful management of the economy,” Mr Sunak told Sophy Ridge on Sunday. “There’s £26bn of fiscal headroom next year and the good news is we’ve met our fiscal targets already.

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“We want to make sure we are fully prepared [for a no deal] – that does mean spending some money – but it’s important to know a lot of that money would need to be spent anyway… We’re going to be leaving the European Union, the Customs Union and the Single Market. That is going to mean change for our country and how we trade.”

‘Anti-democratic’

Mr Sunak said the aim was still to leave with a deal, albeit one that “removed this anti-democratic [Irish] backstop”.

The Chancellor, Sajid Javid, will this week give details of “significant extra funding” to get Britain “fully ready to leave” the EU on October 31, with or without a deal. The additional spending will include financing one of the country’s “biggest ever public information campaigns” to ensure individuals and businesses are ready for a no-deal exit, Mr Javid wrote in the Sunday Telegraph.

“Under my leadership, the Treasury will have new priorities and will play its full role in helping to deliver Brexit,” he said. “In my first day in office as Chancellor, I tasked officials to urgently identify where more money needs to be invested to get Britain fully ready to leave on 31 October – deal or no deal.”

He added that he planned to fund 500 new Border Force officers and look at new infrastructure around the country’s ports to minimise congestion and ensure goods can flow.