Boris Johnson has challenged critics of his “do or die” Brexit strategy by declaring Britain “can easily cope” with a no-deal scenario.

Admitting that the chances of striking a deal with Brussels before the October 31 deadline were now "touch and go" he dismissed suggestions that leaving without an agreement would lead to food shortages.

The Prime Minister said that whether an agreement was reached with the EU depended “entirely” on European leaders, whom he is pressing to drop the insurance plan for the Irish border they had agreed with Theresa May.

He told Sky News that if no deal was reached, the £39 billion divorce settlement agreed with the EU would no longer be “legally pledged”, freeing up “substantial” funds to spent in the UK.

But a senior EU diplomat insisted that the “ball is really squarely and firmly in the UK court”, with the onus on the UK to offer alternatives to the so-called “backstop”.

Mr Johnson’s intervention came on the second day of his first summit of world leaders, in south-west France, as he also revealed that Donald Trump wants to strike a post-Brexit trade deal “within a year”.