Brexit: Theresa May calls crunch cabinet talks as UK heads towards election that ministers admit 'nobody actually wants'

It means that on Tuesday the usual 90-minute cabinet meeting will be ditched, with ministers told to clear their diaries for two meetings lasting five hours in total. The first, between 9am and noon, will be a “political cabinet”, where top ministers discuss political strategy and party matters without government officials listening in. This will then be followed by the more usual cabinet meeting to discuss government matters, such as no-deal Brexit preparations, with civil servants taking notes. Downing Street insisted on Monday that the prime minister still believed a general election was not in the national interest, despite deputy-Conservative chairman James Cleverly admitting his party was engaged in “sensible and pragmatic” planning for a snap poll.