BRITISH taxpayers face paying double its EU divorce bill MPs vote to delay Brexit this week.

Brussels is expected to slap an extra £6.5billion on top of the agreed £39billion pay-off if we stay for an extra four months.

But officials are likely to sanction an extension of at least two years – which will bring the overall price tag to an eye-watering £78billion.

Furious Brexiteers warned on Saturday night that suspending Article 50 beyond March 29 departure date would rob public services of much needed cash.

Even if we delayed leaving until July, the pay-as-you-stay charge would be enough to hire 20,000 police officers, train 43,000 teachers, recruit 29,000 soldiers, 10,000 doctors, 23,000 nurses AND build a super-hospital.

Tory MP Esther McVey said: “Not only is extending Article 50 a betrayal of the British public, it is a hugely expensive betrayal.

“That money would be far better spent on our police, our prisons locking up those who commit knife crimes and our hard-pressed schools.”

DEAL OR NO DEAL?
On Saturday night, Theresa May’s negotiators were scrambling to secure a last-ditch deal to avoid an extension.

A BAe 146 jet was on standby at RAF Northolt to fly the PM to Brussels in the event of a breakthrough.

A Downing Street source said: “These are tough talks which we expect to go right down to the wire. The PM, ministers and her negotiating team are intensely focused this weekend on making progress so that we can, in the country’s best interests, leave the EU with a deal.”

MPs will vote on a delay on Thursday if they kick out the final deal Theresa May gets from Brussels and then block a “no deal” departure.

But they were warned of the crippling cost of a hold-up in an analysis of a formula set out in the Withdrawal Agreement.

It shows that the longer we stay, the quicker the bill rockets as Britain loses its rebate and the EU increases its spending.

The longer the extension the more the bill will rocket, as EU costs rise and Britain loses its rebate.

As finances stand, the UK will pay close to £13.5billion a year up to the end of 2020, according to Office of Budget Responsibility’s latest estimates.

But EU chiefs will up spending to £157billion a year under its new seven-year budget which starts in 2021, an increase of 16 per cent. Any extension beyond the 21-month transitional period will slip us into the higher costs.

To make matters worse, Britain will also lose its rebate, which will add about 25 per cent to our contribution.

Conservative John Redwood has analysed the Withdrawal Agreement and warns it commits the UK to “open-ended bills over many years” and will be “well over” the £39billion estimated by the Treasury.

He added: “It is clear that any delay would come with a price tag of at least an extra £13.5billion a year.

“Just think how much good we could do for our schools, social care and police if we spent some of that money at home. We could also give everyone a tax-cutting Brexit bonus – just the tonic our economy needs as Italy stays in recession and Germany flirts with it.”