Treasury forced to deny Philip Hammond has twice threatened to resign over Brexit clashes with PM
Senior Tories claim Chancellor is upset at being excluded from key meetings over Britain leaving the EU
HUGE FEARS of a Cabinet divide erupted last night amid claims Philip Hammond has TWICE threatened to resign over Brexit clashes with Theresa May.
Senior Tories claimed the Chancellor has come close to quitting on two separate occasions, upset at the way Brexit is being handled by No.10 and at being excluded from key strategy meetings.
A Treasury source last night vehemently denied the claims – insisting they were “completely untrue”.
But the incendiary claims lifted the lid on the explosive split at the heart of the Government over the UK’s future relationship with the EU.
One Cabinet Minister slammed Mr Hammond for spreading “doom and gloom” over a Brexit and talking down the economy – snapping: “It’s as if George Osborne never left.”
Another source said the Treasury appeared desperate to keep Britain in the single market – a ‘Soft Brexit’ which could cripple the Government’s demands to take back control of UK borders and rip up EU free movement rules.
The source told the Sun: “Philip is becoming increasingly isolated. I don’t know what game he thinks he’s playing but it’s backfiring massively.
“The Treasury seem to want to wrestle control of the EU negotiations from No.10 – and it’s just not going to happen.”
The Sun first revealed a major Cabinet split was brewing over whether to pull out of the Customs Union – part of the Single Market.
One of Theresa May’s top table team predicted resignations over the issue – saying either ‘Hard Brexit’ backing Trade Secretary Liam Fox or Philip Hammond would quit.
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Friends of Mr Hammond last night were playing down the talk of a civil war – pointing out that he had long coveted the job of Chancellor and wasn’t going to quit just months after landing the role.
But one of his allies told the Mail on Sunday yesterday: “Philip and the PM are fighting over almost everything, and not just over the single market.
“Things are very tense, and we hope he doesn’t do anything rash.”
It comes just days before Theresa May is due to attend her first EU Council in Brussels as Prime Minister this Thursday.
She will follow the two-day meeting with EU leaders with a face-to-face showdown with Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon on Monday (Oct 24).
Ms Sturgeon yesterday piled pressure onto the PM by saying she had failed to “honour” her pledge to involve Scotland in Brexit discussions.
And she insisted that the ‘Out’ vote on June 23 wasn’t a mandate to take Britain out of the EU’s single market.
On a trip to Wall Street earlier this month, the Chancellor said that protecting EU trade links were as vital as border controls.
And he lavished praise on Bank of England Governor Mark Carney just days after Downing Street criticised his money printing policy.
The Treasury source last night said: “It’s completely untrue that Philip has threatened to resign.”