Boris Johnson fires Brexit warning shot by revealing Britain will break off nearly all contact with EU in ten days to force through Brexit

BORIS Johnson has fired a warning shot at EU leaders saying Britain will break off nearly all contact with Brussels by September 1 to focus on Brexit.

The Department for Exiting the European Union (DExEU) confirmed UK officials will stop attending meetings at the start of next month.

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Around 800 were due to take place, but Brexit Secretary Steve Barclay said British Officials only be attending the meetings that “really matter”.

He told : “An incredible amount of time and effort goes into EU meetings with attendance just the tip of the iceberg.

“From now on we will only go to the meetings that really matter, reducing attendance by over half and saving hundreds of hours.

“This will free up time for Ministers and their officials to get on with preparing for our departure on October 31 and seizing the opportunities that lie ahead.”

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The news comes as the PM said he was ready to look at new legally binding “commitments” to guarantee the Irish border is kept open if the new system is not ready in time.

He wrote a four-page letter to EU Council president Donald Tusk to demand the backstop is axed - who didn't seem to be bothered with Mr Johnson's threats as he shared an image of him reading in his hammock on Instagram.

He wants the controversial insurance mechanism that keeps the UK tied to EU customs rules in the wake of a No Deal replaced by a system of stand-off border checks.

Imploring EU leaders to engage with his plan, he wrote: “The UK is ready to move quickly, and given the degree of common ground already, I hope the EU will be ready to do likewise.

“I am equally confident our Parliament is able to act rapidly if we were able to reach a satisfactory agreement which did not contain the backstop.”

'BUMPS ON THE ROAD'

The PM said he believed EU leaders would climb down in the Brexit deal stand-off.

Mr Johnson will visit Berlin and Paris tomorrow and Thursday for his talks with leaders Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron.

In his letter, the PM laid out his three major objections to the backstop - on sovereignty, the destination of the future relationship, and how it damages the Good Friday peace agreement.

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Mr Johnson admitted a No Deal Brexit would see “bumps on the road” as he responded for the first time to the leaked Operation Yellowhammer dossier.

It also emerged that Downing Street is preparing a major new drive to remind all Brits they need to get ready for an October 31 exit without an agreement.

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