THE UK will be ready for a no-deal Brexit, South Swindon’s MP said.

Robert Buckland’s comments followed the publication of a leaked government report setting out fears of medicine shortages, nationwide protests and three-month queues at British ports.

The Sunday Times claimed to have obtained the Operation Yellowhammer report in full. In it, civil servants listed the likely aftershocks should the UK leave the European Union without a deal.

New petrol import tariffs could inadvertently lead to the closure of two oil refineries, the report’s authors said. There would be a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic and the public could expect food shortages.

Michael Gove, minister for a no-deal, said it was an old report that only detailed the “very, very worst situation”. However, a senior Whitehall source told the Sunday Times: “This is not Project Fear – this is the most realistic assessment of what the public face with no-deal.” Reporters suggested that estimates of freight movements across the Channel are recent and showed the report was written in the past few weeks, rather than longer ago as some have said.

Reacting to the publication of the report, South Swindon MP and Justice Secretary Robert Buckland told the Adver: “I understand that Number 10 is saying the documents are of some age and they pre-date the coming to power of Boris.

“What I can say is that in the last three weeks there’s been a real sense of energy and purpose in preparing for no-deal.

“Without going into the details, I am increasingly satisfied that the preparations are going in the right directions and we’ll be ready.

“The prime minister is absolutely right to say we’re going to leave on October 31. It’s clear. He’s not hedging it or qualifying it, and we’ll be ready for it.”

Yesterday, CBI director-general Dame Carolyn Fairbairn said the Government should focus on getting a Brexit deal because failure would come with a significant cost.

She told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “I think we can be prepared, we should be prepared, but I don’t think that takes away from the fact that what Yellowhammer shows, and I think what businesses have been saying for three years, is that the cost will be really significant for our economy and for jobs and that a deal is the number one priority.”

Shadow chancellor Mr McDonnell said Labour wants to see Parliament reconvened “in the next few days” to drive efforts to avoid a no-deal Brexit.

More than 100 MPs have signed a letter demanding Mr Johnson recalls Parliament, and Mr McDonnell said he too backed the move.

“There is a need now to bring MPs back together again because we need time now to really have a proper debate and discussion about this matter,” he told Today.

Prime minister Boris Johnson yesterday said Brussels will blink first in the Brexit stand-off but acknowledged there would be “bumps along the road”.