Brexit minister David Raab told the Conservative Party conference that the UK would leave the EU without a deal rather than be bullied into signing a one - sided one , although he said the government ’s own deal was not perfect . His words were criticised by a number of European politicians and diplomats while a European Commission spokesman suggested everyone "could benefit from opening a history book from time to time". He said if the EU tried to lock the UK into a customs union and single market , the UK would have no choice but to leave without an agreement . He dismissed forecasts of serious consequences if there was no deal , however , as the EU was unlikely to punish the UK in way counterproductive to itself .
Brexit minister David Raab told the Conservative Party conference that the UK would leave the EU without a deal rather than be bullied into signing a one - sided one , although he said the government ’s own deal was not perfect . He said if the EU tried to lock the UK into a customs union and single market , the UK would have no choice but to leave without an agreement . He dismissed forecasts of serious consequences if there was no deal , however , as the EU was unlikely to punish the UK in way counterproductive to itself .