“We would not in effect be leaving the European Union.” @Jacob_Rees_Mogg says the issue with the customs partnership is that “to be effective” it would have to keep Britain in the single market as well. pic.twitter.com/7tWIBf3xJz

— Peston on Sunday (@pestononsunday) 6 May 2018

It’s nearly two years since the referendum and the government still hasn’t decided its position on customs. Number 10 want to further delay the decision to the Autumn (by which point any remaining negotiating leverage will have disappeared). Senior Tories are now in open warfare on TV over the issue. It’s hard to understate how serious the next few days are…

On Peston Jacob Rees-Mogg clearly explained why the customs partnership would require adherence to single market rules to function. “We would not in effect be leaving the European Union”… 

Leader of the ERG @Jacob_Rees_Mogg suggests that Cabinet figures (like @GregClarkMP) arguing that rejecting the PM’s customs partnership plan will see jobs lost are engaging in the return of ‘project fear’. #Peston pic.twitter.com/4juTwqO2C0

— Peston on Sunday (@pestononsunday) 6 May 2018

He then accused Business Secretary Greg Clark of fostering “scare stories” and “Project Fear”:

“You’d have thought it would have come to an end by now.”