Scotland is heading for “havoc” with fuel, food and medicine shortages after a Halloween no-deal Brexit, according to UK Government’s secret files.
Leaked documents outlined the “likely” impact of following through on Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s threat to rip up agreements with Europe on October 31.
Medicines, including insulin, could be in short supply and shops won’t be able to fill their shelves.
Police in Scotland are braced for civil unrest.
Two of Britain’s six refineries could close, leading to fuel shortages and massive job losses. One of the main refineries is at Grangemouth on the Firth of Forth.
The explosive documents, obtained by the Sunday Times, were dismissed by hardline anti-EU politicians.
But the SNP’s Europe spokesman, Stephen Gethins MP, said: “The warnings about crashing out of the EU without a deal have been highlighted time and time again but these government documents lay bare the sheer havoc Scotland and the UK are hurtling towards.
“The Tory Prime Minister is in a state of delusion and denial over the impact his extreme Brexit plans will have on essential supplies such as food, medicines and fuel.”
Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard said: “These leaked documents make for grim reading.
“They set out in forensic detail the chaos Boris Johnson would unleash on communities right across the country.
“His plan for such a chaotic no-deal Brexit must be stopped.”
The UK warnings are codenamed Yellowhammer and cover the preparations needed to fill gaps before the leave date.
The original agreement signed by former prime minister Theresa May was rejected by Brexit-supporting politicians who would rather cut ties than compromise, and by MPs who want to stop Brexit.
Johnson is heading for talks with EU leaders this week and wants them to come up with a new proposal. His European counterparts have said they signed a deal and won’t start again.
The leaked report made it clear the no-deal proposal is reckless from day one. It stated: “For the purpose of freight flow and traffic management, as October 31 is a Thursday, day one of exit is now on a Friday rather than the weekend, which is not to our advantage.”
Officials looked at the stark problems for medicine, food, transport, health, exports and public safety – and found serious problems with each.
For medicine, the common route is across the Channel, where significant disruption could reduced flow of goods for six months. The report warned: “It will not be practical to stockpile six months’ supplies.”
Officials said police resources will be used up by protests and warned there may be a rise in public disorder and community tensions.
Police Scotland deputy chief constable Will Kerr is due to brief colleagues in Inverness on Wednesday about Brexit-related costs. A paper for the Scottish Police Authority board meeting puts the figure at more than £7million.
Tory MP Michael Gove, the cabinet minister responsible for no-deal planning, tried to downplay the extent of the leaked UK report.
He claimed: “We don’t normally comment on leaks – but a few facts – Yellowhammer is a worst case scenario.”
Gove added “significant steps” had been taken in the past three weeks to accelerate Brexit planning.
Sources close to the Prime Minister also tried to shift blame to the former PM.
A No10 source said: “This document is from when ministers were blocking what needed to be done to get ready to leave and the funds were not available. It has been deliberately leaked by a former minister in an attempt to influence discussions with EU leaders.”
