Former British PM calls for new referendum on Brexit

The UK’s bid to break away from the European Union has hit a potential snag with former British Prime Minister John Major calling for a new vote on Brexit.

Major said holding a second referendum to gauge public sentiment now that more is known about the true impact of Brexit would be "morally justified" because Brexit advocates made so many inflated claims ahead of the June 2016 vote.

"If you look back at the Leave campaign, a great many of the promises they made were fantasy promises," he said. "We now know they are not going to be met."

Overnight, Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab told the BBC he and others are negotiating “the best deal” on areas of trade and security however, he revealed the government must prepare itself for a “no deal”.

“We’re obviously aiming to get the best deal we can on trade security and all other areas. We’ve made really good progress this week,” Mr Raab said.

“But I think any responsible government would have to make sure you’ve got the planning and preparations in place in the event of the negotiations not reaching a positive outcome, and that’s what we’re doing.”

The UK is expected to leave the EU on March 29 next year and while Mr Raab said a deal would be done in October, momentum has somewhat stalled.

In a new twist overnight, Mr Raab suggested Britain might not pay its 39 billion pound ($68 billion) divorce bill if no trade agreement with the European Union is reached.

"You can't have one side fulfilling its side of the bargain and the other side not, or going slow, or failing to commit on its side," he told the Sunday Telegraph, implying that the threat of withholding payment might get Brexit talks back on track.

Britain and the EU remain far apart on terms of a new trade setup. British Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative Party is also deeply split over what Brexit policy to support.

Mr Raab replaced David Davis, who resigned two weeks ago to protest May's "soft" Brexit plan.

May has faced a substantial rebellion from party colleagues who favor a complete break with the EU — a so-called "hard" Brexit — rather than May's proposal, which calls for a "common rule book" with European nations that would govern trade in goods.

EU negotiator Michel Barnier is also lukewarm on May's latest proposal, asking many questions about its viability.

Mr Raab, however, says he is still hopeful a deal can be concluded this year.

"Actually the fact Michel Barnier is not blowing it out the water but asking questions is a good positive sign — that's what we negotiate on," Mr Raab said.