Liz Truss has told officials to be ready to trigger Article 16 from next week, in an attempt to force a quick deal with the EU over the Northern Ireland protocol.
The foreign secretary has “lost faith” in negotiations with the EU and wants Boris Johnson to warn the European Commission that Britain is ready to suspend parts of the protocol if a deal is not struck before elections in Northern Ireland in May.
The prime minister is understood to be ready to deliver such a warning, despite fears that a full-scale diplomatic row with the EU could fracture western unity against President Putin.
Some in Whitehall are said to want to kick the dispute “into the long grass” while the world deals with
