Ambassador claimed Theresa May was driving towards a Brexit ‘car crash’ in meetings with David Cameron before quitting as UK’s top Brussels official
Sir Ivan Rogers held talks with the ex-PM where he voiced concerns the current PM risked heading for a 'disorderly' EU exit
SIR IVAN Rogers reportedly held meetings with David Cameron where she criticised Theresa May's approach to Brexit in the weeks before quitting as UK ambassador to the EU.
The diplomat, who has since resigned from the civil service too, held talks with the former PM before Christmas where he voiced concerns the current PM risked heading for a "disorderly" exit from Brussels.
Sir Ivan has told friends he fears a so-called ‘hard Brexit’ would lead to "mutually assured destruction" for the UK and EU, reported.
The newspaper said the pair dined together towards the end of 2016 and quoted a "source familiar with the conversation" as claiming that Sir Ivan fears the UK is heading for a "car crash".
The source said: "Rogers spoke to Cameron. His biggest fear was that the biggest issue is not hard or soft Brexit, but whether we have an orderly or a disorderly Brexit.
"He thinks we are heading for a car crash, where we don't get a deal and we crash out with nothing. Downing Street's view was that he should stop being such a pessimist.
"Rogers thinks we need to plan for a disorderly Brexit on our terms rather than theirs. No10 has not given that the priority it deserves."
Sir Ivan shocked Westminster and Brussels with his resignation as permanent representative on Tuesday and used an email to staff to criticise "muddled thinking" over Brexit.
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Mr Cameron's former aide Sir Craig Oliver said Sir Ivan was known in Downing Street for his gloomy assessments.
"When I was in Downing Street, Ivan had the affectionate nickname of 'tin hat' and the reason for that was because he used to send these very long emails that were quite dark and saying how difficult things were going to be," the former Number 10 spin doctor told BBC1's The Andrew Marr Show.
"Some people thought that he was being overly pessimistic, and other people felt 'well, actually, he is being a hard-headed pragmatist and he is telling people how it is'."
The Foreign Office confirmed he had now left the civil service entirely.
A spokeswoman said: "He did not seek any further civil service appointment and has therefore resigned from the civil service with immediate effect.
"We are grateful for Sir Ivan's work in Brussels and across a number of other senior positions in the civil service."
It is understood Sir Ivan will receive three months' pay in lieu of notice, in line with standard Foreign Office terms, but no special "pay off" was offered or sought.
He is being succeeded by career diplomat Sir Tim Barrow, a former ambassador to Russia described by Downing Street as a "seasoned and tough negotiator" who will help the Government make a success of Brexit.
In a fiery message to staff announcing his resignation from the Brussels post, Sir Ivan made a thinly veiled attack on Mrs May.
He told colleagues to continue to challenge the "ill-founded arguments and muddled thinking" of politicians, and said civil servants still did not know the Government's plans for Brexit.