Government ‘plans to put the UK on the path to a Swiss-style relationship with the EU’

The UK could be heading for a ‘Swiss-style’ relationship with the EU over the next decade after it was reported that senior officials in Rishi Sunak’s government were considering adopting a similar stance that suppresses trade barriers.

Tory Brexiteer MPs last night reacted furiously to the reports and said it could amount to a ‘betrayal’ of the freedoms they say were won following the 2016 referendum result, adding that the Party conservative ‘wouldn’t wear it’.

Former Cabinet Minister Jacob Rees-Mogg has said the Tories are a ‘Brexit party’ and risk becoming a ‘non-Brexit party’ if they agree to ‘unfettered’ trade with the EU.

Downing Street sources dismissed the report, but The Times suggested that behind closed doors some government officials indicated that pursuing a frictionless trade relationship requires moving to a Swiss-style deal within 10 coming years.

The plan, designed to foster closer economic ties with the bloc, would represent a major departure from the approach taken by Boris Johnson.

It comes as the UK remains deadlocked in talks with the EU over the Northern Ireland protocol.

Former Brexit Opportunities Minister Jacob Rees-Mogg said: ‘It would just be the name of Brexit – it would basically remove Brexit’s teeth and not even replace it with dentures’

The plan, designed to foster closer economic ties with the bloc, would represent a major departure from the approach taken by Boris Johnson

Switzerland and the EU maintain close economic relations based on a series of bilateral agreements, giving the country direct access to parts of the EU internal market, including the free movement of people.

However, government sources insisted that freedom of movement and entry into the single market would be ruled out.

Any deal between the UK and Brussels should benefit both sides equally and would take many years to complete, they said, adding that they did not recognize the Swiss model as a model.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has previously alarmed Brexiteers after saying he was seeking ‘unfettered trade’ with the EU, although he warned this must be done outside the single market.

Tory Brexit campaigners reacted angrily to the report of a Swiss-style dummy in The Sunday Times, with one telling the Mail on Sunday: “It didn’t take long for the mask to slip off.

“It’s a total betrayal. The ERG [European Research Group of eurosceptic Tory MPs] must fight tooth and nail.

Former Brexit Opportunity Minister Jacob Rees-Mogg said: ‘It would just be the name of Brexit – it would basically remove Brexit’s teeth and not even replace it with dentures.’

Lord Frost said the change in policy would be ‘unacceptable’ after working in tandem to negotiate with the EU alongside Boris Johnson.

“If we did that, all the benefits of regulatory divergence would be lost. There would be no point in trying to do trade deals around the world because we would have no regulatory flexibility and we would have no say in the rules.

“The Conservative Party is a Brexit party and it cannot become a non-Brexit party.”

Tory MP Peter Bone said: ‘The party wouldn’t wear this. If you participated in an election to leave the EU, won an 80-seat majority and won a referendum on this, there is no way this will be acceptable.

“If the government tried to do this, the party would split both in the House of Commons and in the country. This is sheer madness. That said, I haven’t heard anyone suggest it.

Former Brexit minister David Jones condemned the plan as “100% anathema to Brexit”.

Mr Jones added: “The fact is that Switzerland is involved in perpetual negotiations with the EU on all aspects of market rules. We simply cannot accept that here.

Switzerland has access to the European single market, an agreement on the free movement of persons and makes payments to the EU budget.

It is also an approach that Mr Johnson and Lord Frost, his chief Brexit negotiator, ruled out when crafting the UK’s 2020 negotiating mandate.

Lord Frost told the Sunday Times: “Any approach that forces the UK to come into line with EU rules to gain trade advantages, whether under a Swiss-style approach or any other approach, would be totally unacceptable”.

“Boris Johnson and I have fought very hard to avoid such requirements in 2020 and ensure the UK can make its own laws, and we shouldn’t consider giving it away in the future.”

Jeremy Hunt, the Chancellor, has signaled that Rishi Sunak’s administration intends to break away from the approach taken by Mr Johnson and remove the vast majority of trade barriers with the bloc.

Privately, high-level government sources have suggested that pursuing frictionless trade requires moving towards a relationship with Switzerland, the newspaper reports.

“I think unfettered trade with our neighbors and countries around the world is very beneficial for growth,” he told BBC Radio 4 Today.

“I am confident that in the years to come, we will find outside the single market we will be able to remove the vast majority of trade barriers that exist between us and the EU. It will take time.’

His remarks alarmed members of the European Research Group (ERG) who led the battle for Brexit.

The group also fears that the government is preparing to cede ground to Brussels to resolve the disagreement over the Northern Irish protocol.

A Downing Street source told the newspaper that Mr Sunak was “leading the fight” against the EU, but also hoped a more constructive approach from both sides could bear fruit.

‘Rishi wants to settle this as soon as possible; there is definitely a deal to be done,’ a No 10 source said.

“It is the feeling of our team that there is a lot more landing zone, in terms of what we would be happy with, than there ever was.”

But they added: “He fights against them.” He’s not going to give up stuff that he and the party wouldn’t be happy for him to give up.

No.10 declined to comment on the news when contacted by MailOnline.