Nigel Farage today congratulated his arch nemesis Michel Barnier on beating the UK in the Brexit talks – declaring Brussels had won ‘game, set and match’.
But he warned the deal is so loathed in Britain that it does not stand a chance of getting backed by MPs and the UK could be set to crash out without a deal at all.
It came after Mr Barnier said the agreement thrashed out with Theresa May is the only deal on the table.
Speaking in a half empty chamber in the European Parliament for a standard plenary session this morning, Mr Farage it is a ‘good deal’ for the EU but hated in Britain.
The ex Ukip leader said: ‘It is a good deal for the European Union. For the UK, I think it is probably the worst deal in history.’
He added: ‘Mr Barnier, I have to say, I wish you were on our side really, because it is game, set and match to you.’
Lashing the PM’s divorce deal, he said it ‘shattered any illusion’ that Britain will become an independent country after March next year.
Nigel Farage today congratulated his arch nemesis Michel Barnier (pictured together in the EU Parliament) on beating the UK in the Brexit talks – declaring Brussels had won ‘game, set and match’
He said: ‘There is the backstop, which means that the United Kingdom can be held effectively a hostage for many years to come.’
He tore into Mrs May for signing the UK up to what he said is woeful deal which keeps the UK tied to the EU customs union and EU rules.
Turning to Mr Barnier, who was sat next to him in the Chamber, he said: ‘You probably can’t even believe your luck that you came up against a British Prime Minister who met every single demand of yours while at the same time trying to deceive the British public.
‘And you took it to the big summit on Sunday and in 38 minutes it was all agreed and it was done and dusted, and off to lunch.
‘Well, I have to say we will be leaving on March 29 next year but any illusion at home that we are going to be an independent country, I am afraid, has been shattered.’
Mr Farage said that ‘before the ink was even dry’ on the deal, Emmanuel Macron began firing off threats against Britain.
The French President last week said he would use all his leverage to force Britain to let French trawlers fish in UK waters in return for a trade deal.
The ex Ukip leader warned the French threats are a sign of things to come as the UK will be ‘very much open and at your mercy’.
He said: ‘And that is why this is going to fail in Parliament and probably fail by a very big margin.
‘Mr Barnier, you say this is the only possible deal, but this deal isn’t going to be accepted.
‘So perhaps we all need to grow up and actually recognise that there is a strong chance now of the UK leaving on March 29 on a WTO no deal. We need a negotiated deal to deal with sensible border issues.
‘I wonder Mr Barnier, are you prepared for that? Because you seem this morning to have assumed that the British Parliament is going to ratify that.’
His withering assessment of the deal comes as Mrs May faces a titanic battle to try to get her deal passed in the face of overwhelming opposition from MPs.
The PM is bracing herself for a humiliating defeat as nearly 100 mutinous Tories have vowed to join Labour and the SNP in voting down her deal.
But Mr Barnier today insisted that the agreement is the only deal on the table.
He said: ‘Given the … high degree of complexity of all the issues surrounding the UK’s withdrawal, the orderly withdrawal treaty that is on the table is the only deal possible. This is now the moment of ratification.’
