However, government sources made it clear Mrs May will not be “pressured” into softening her Brexit red lines, and in particular will not allow a customs border in the Irish Sea. A government source accused Brussels of “gamesmanship” after EU diplomatic sources said a deal was “very close”, suggesting the EU was putting out positive language so it could blame Britain if no deal could be done. Loading Sources in Brussels suggested the deal offered to Mrs May would be tariff-free but would not allow completely frictionless trade, because that would undermine the integrity of the single market. Instead it would describe the arrangement as being “as frictionless as possible”. In return the EU will demand stronger “level playing field” conditions to ensure the UK does not gain a competitive advantage in areas such as regulatory standards, employment law and state aid.

The draft agreement on trade could be fewer than 10 pages long, with full details to be thrashed out during the 21-month transition period, according to sources in Brussels. The deal appears to be dependent on Mrs May accepting different customs arrangements in Northern Ireland and mainland Britain, which she has been clear she will not accept. Loading Helen McEntee, Ireland’s Europe Minister, raised hopes of a deal being close by saying: “I think in the next 10 days if there is a proposal, obviously on its own it won't resolve the border issue, but certainty if something is legally sound and workable, I do believe that the (EU's Brexit) taskforce will work with Prime Minister May." She added: "I do think that the Prime Minister wants to reach an agreement because I think this is the best outcome for all of us. I think a cliff-edge or a no-deal scenario is something we shouldn't even contemplate.

"We have 10 days between the teams to negotiate and we have seen what has happened in a short space of time previously. I think where the will is there it can be done, and I do believe the will is there." Mrs May will travel to Brussels on October 18 for a crunch meeting with the other 27 EU leaders to decide if a Brexit deal can be done. Olly Robbins, Mrs May’s chief negotiator, will be involved in lengthy talks before then, with British sources suggesting the route to a deal may become clear by the end of next week. Mr Tusk, the President of the European Council, said on Thursday that the EU was ready to offer the UK a ''Canada plus plus plus'' trade deal, but the offer would also mean a customs border in the Irish Sea, which is a red line for Mrs May. A senior Whitehall source said: “This is gamesmanship by the EU. Britain’s position has not moved at all, and the EU will need to compromise if a deal is to be done.