Theresa May will promise a clean break from the EU today – ruling out any deal that ‘leaves us half-in, half-out’

Theresa May will promise a clean break from the EU today – ruling out any deal that ‘leaves us half-in, half-out’.

Setting out her detailed plan for Brexit, the Prime Minister will reject partial or associate membership in favour of a ‘brighter future’ outside the Brussels bloc.

Her 12-point plan will see Britain regain full control over borders and quit both the single market and European Court of Justice. She will insist the UK can become a great, outward-looking trading nation.

‘We seek a new and equal partnership – between an independent, self-governing, global Britain and our friends and allies in the EU,’ she will say.

‘Not partial membership of the European Union, associate membership of the European Union, or anything that leaves us half-in, half-out.

‘We do not seek to adopt a model already enjoyed by other countries. We do not seek to hold on to bits of membership as we leave.

‘The United Kingdom is leaving the European Union. My job is to get the right deal for Britain as we do.’

The PM will not explicitly vow to leave the customs union, which allows tariff-free trade and the movement of goods between its members.

Setting out her detailed plan for Brexit, the Prime Minister will reject partial or associate membership in favour of a ‘brighter future’ outside the Brussels bloc

But she is determined not to sign up to anything that restricts the ability to take back sovereignty from the ECJ or prevents solo trade deals with the rest of the world.

In effect, this means quitting the customs union as it stands, and trying to strike a new trade deal which gives Britain the best of both worlds. One option would be to opt back in to some elements of the customs union, but on our own terms.

Mrs May will say her guiding principles, once she triggers the two-year article 50 process for leaving the EU in March, will be to provide certainty and clarity to business, while delivering a ‘stronger, fairer, truly global Britain’.

She will say the British people voted for Brexit ‘with their eyes open’.

However, the speech has already triggered a wave of protest from Remainers, who have insisted that leaving the single market or customs union would be a disaster for the economy.

Labour former cabinet minister and arch-Europhile Lord Mandelson accused Mrs May of pretending there was a 'clicky fingers' solution to Brexit.

The peer insisted the UK should accept the EU's principle of free movement - which has helped drive net migration to 330,000 a year - in return for staying in the single market.

Theresa May will insist the UK can become a great, outward-looking trading nation

'This is a Prime Minister who says that she doesn't accept that there is a difference between a hard and a soft Brexit,' he told BBC Radio Four's Today programme.

'I think she is pretending that difficult choices that the Government has to make simply don't exist. If she doesn't know what a hard Brexit is, let me tell her what it is: it's when UK goods suddenly face tariffs of as much 10 per cent or more in our biggest export market...

'There are no clicky finger solutions to these issues, but not even to acknowledge the difficult choices that have to be made, I think is very worrying indeed.'

Mrs May's hand in the negotiations has been dramatically strengthened after Donald Trump promised to do a quick trade deal with Britain yesterday.

The resilience of UK plc has also been underlined after the IMF revealed it was the fastest growing economy in the developed world last year – and sharply uprated its gloomy forecasts for 2017.

Mrs May briefed the Cabinet on her vision this morning before delivering her speech.

At the top of the list of 12 objectives is a commitment to regain control of the UK’s borders with a visa regime for EU workers and a pledge to restore British sovereignty by no longer being subject to the rulings of the European Court of Justice.

Mrs May will also set out her determination to create the maximum trading opportunities for Britain with the EU and the rest of the world; make the UK an attractive destination for investment and study; and protect and enhance workers’ rights.

The list includes securing a deal that will allow the three million EU citizens living in Britain to stay here, with a reciprocal arrangement for Britons living abroad.

In a bid to ease tensions north of the border, the PM will also make a specific commitment to ‘preserve the Union’ with Scotland by securing a Brexit that works for those on both sides of the border.

Downing Street yesterday made it clear that, while Mrs May will be seeking the best possible deal with the EU, the country will not lie down if Brussels refuses a deal.

Mrs May briefed the Cabinet, including Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and Home Secretary Amber Rudd, this morning before delivering her speech

Environment Secretary Andrea Leadsom, a prominent Leave campaigner, appeared pleased as she arrived for the Cabinet gathering this morning

Chancellor Philip Hammond has threatened to slash business taxes if the EU will not reach agreement on tariff-free trade. The tactic has been dubbed a trade war.

The PM’s official spokesman said: ‘She shares the view that the Chancellor set out that we would want to remain in the mainstream of recognisable European taxation systems – but if we are forced to do something different because we cannot get the right deal then we stand ready to do so.’

Mrs May will tell an audience of ambassadors at London’s Lancaster House: ‘A little over six months ago the British people voted for change. They voted to shape a brighter future for our country.

'They voted to leave the European Union and embrace the world. And they did so with their eyes open: accepting that the road ahead will be uncertain at times, but believing that it leads toward a brighter future for their children – and their grandchildren too.

Brexit Secretary David Davis, seen arriving for Cabinet today, is due to make a statement to MPs in the Commons later

Yesterday, Berlin and Brussels reacted with fury to a prediction by Mr Trump that the EU could begin to fall apart

‘It is the job of this Government to deliver it. That means more than negotiating our new relationship with the EU. It means taking the opportunity of this great moment of national change to step back and ask ourselves what kind of country we want to be.

‘My answer is clear. I want this United Kingdom to emerge from this period of change stronger, fairer, more united and more outward-looking than ever before.

‘I want us to be a secure, prosperous, tolerant country – a magnet for international talent and a home to the pioneers and innovators who will shape the world ahead.

‘I want us to be a truly global Britain – the best friend and neighbour to our European partners, but a country that reaches beyond the borders of Europe too. A country that gets out into the world to build relationships with old friends and new allies alike.

CARNEY AND IMF EAT MORE HUMBLE PIE AS ECONOMY KEEPS ON BOOMING Households have defied doom-mongers by continuing to splash out after the Brexit vote, the governor of the Bank of England said last night Households have defied doom-mongers by continuing to splash out after the Brexit vote, the governor of the Bank of England said last night. Mark Carney, who has been accused of taking part in the Project Fear campaign against Brexit, admitted the economy has fared better than expected. Figures from the IMF, which had warned against leaving the EU, yesterday showed Britain was the fastest growing major economy in the developed world last year. The global watchdog said the UK’s 2 per cent growth in 2016 outpaced the other Group of Seven leading industrialised nations – the United States, Japan, Canada, Germany, France and Italy. The IMF said it now expects Britain’s economy to grow by 1.5 per cent this year. It forecast 1.1 per cent in October. ‘Domestic demand held up better than expected in the aftermath of the Brexit vote,’ the Fund said. IMF chief Christine Lagarde had warned Britain’s prospects following a Leave vote would be ‘pretty bad to very, very bad’. Mr Carney put the strength of the UK economy down to British consumers – adding that the ‘flexibility and dynamism’ of the economy stood the country in good stead for the future as ‘new opportunities with the rest of the world open up’. ‘Households appear to be entirely looking through Brexit-related uncertainties,’ he said in a speech at the London School of Economics. The comments marked yet another U-turn from the Bank and its governor, who before the referendum warned a vote to leave the EU could trigger a recession. Mark Carney, who has been accused of taking part in the Project Fear campaign against Brexit, admitted the economy has fared better than expected He said the economy was ‘increasingly consumption-led’ and warned rising prices could dampen spending this year. Last August the Bank slashed its growth forecasts for 2017 to 0.8 per cent, having cut interest rates to a new low of 0.25 per cent. But in November it was forced to admit the outlook was far brighter – and it raised its prediction for this year to 1.4 per cent. Mr Carney last week hinted that a further upgrade could follow next month as he conceded ‘the immediate risks around Brexit have gone down for the UK’. Speaking last night, he added: ‘Over the autumn, demand growth remained more resilient than had been expected, particularly consumer spending and to a lesser extent the housing market.’ He noted that the financial markets had been ‘less sanguine’ – and pointed to the fall in the pound since the Brexit vote. ‘Ultimately, the tension between consumer strength on the one hand and the more pessimistic expectations of markets on the other will be resolved,’ he said. Advertisement

‘I want Britain to be what we have the potential and ambition to be: a great, global trading nation that is respected around the world and strong, confident and united at home.’

Yesterday, Berlin and Brussels reacted with fury to a prediction by Mr Trump that the EU could begin to fall apart – with other countries quitting the bloc in protest at mass immigration. Mrs May will strike a far more conciliatory tone, saying it remains ‘overwhelmingly and compellingly in Britain’s national interest that the EU should succeed’.

She will state: ‘Our vote to leave the European Union was no rejection of the values we share. The decision to leave the EU represents no desire to become more distant to you, our friends and neighbours.

‘We will continue to be reliable partners, willing allies and close friends. We want to buy your goods, sell you ours, trade with you as freely as possible, and work with one another to make sure we are all safer, more secure and more prosperous through continued friendship.’

The Prime Minister’s speech is expected to trigger an outpouring of anger and protest from the Remain side.

Lib Dem leader Tim Farron said Mrs May was heading for ‘a destructive, hard Brexit and the consequences will be felt by millions of people through higher prices, greater instability and rising fuel costs’.