The UK’s guidelines for the negotiations, which cover trade and other aspects of the future relationship with Brussels, sets the deadline for progress against a backdrop of deep divisions between the two sides over issues including fish, state subsidies and standards.

The Government has set out its plans for the talks ahead of the first round of negotiations on Monday, making clear that it “will not negotiate any arrangements in which the UK does not have control of its own laws and political life”.

It clearly states the UK’s intention to rely on World Trade Organisation terms under an arrangement with the EU similar to Australia’s if progress on a comprehensive deal cannot be made.

But Paul Blomfield, Labour’s Shadow Brexit Minister and Sheffield Central MP described the Government’s plans as “underwhelming” and added: “They started with a commitment to securing the ‘exact same benefits’ that we currently enjoy.

“This was scaled back to ‘frictionless trade’ to protect our vital supply chains. Then it was Canada+++, now it’s ‘Canada so long as it doesn’t get in the way of ending our alignment with the standards we’ve previously enjoyed’.”

And Commons Home Affairs Select Committee chairwoman and Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford MP Yvette Cooper questioned the Government’s negotiating position, which included confirmation that the UK would leave the European Arrest Warrant regime.

“The Government’s new red lines make it exceedingly difficult for anything more than the standard third-country relationship with the EU on security co-operation to be negotiated,” she said.

“That is not good enough and marks a huge scaling back in ambition.

“The Government only have nine months before our existing security arrangements run out but the committee was told that it could take up to 18 months to ratify a new security treaty and possibly much longer for new extradition arrangements to replace the European Arrest Warrant.

“It is completely astounding that the Government says that these new plans will make the country safer when we have been told time and time again by senior police officers and security experts that the opposite is true.”

Whatever the outcome of the talks, businesses have been warned to expect friction at the border from January 1 because the UK will not extend the transition period and will therefore be leaving the EU’s single market and customs union.

A high-level meeting to take stock of progress is scheduled for June, by which time it should be clear whether the Canada-style comprehensive free trade agreement (FTA) sought by Mr Johnson is possible by the end of the year.

The negotiation guidelines envisaged the “broad outline of an agreement” by the June meeting, which would be “rapidly finalised” by September.

“If that does not seem to be the case at the June meeting, the Government will need to decide whether the UK’s attention should move away from negotiations and focus solely on continuing domestic preparations to exit the transition period in an orderly fashion.”

In the Political Declaration agreed by the Prime Minister and EU last year, the two sides agreed to work towards a deal “encompassing robust commitments to ensure a level playing field”.

The EU’s mandate called for any agreement to use Brussels’ standards as “a reference point” over time - indicating that the UK could be expected to keep aligned with changes to the rules covering state subsidies, environmental standards and workers’ rights in future, something that would breach Mr Johnson’s red lines.

Downing Street insiders indicated Mr Johnson believes the mandate he won at the general election trumps the declaration.

Senior Cabinet minister Michael Gove told MPs yesterday: “The UK Government seeks a FTA with robust protections for the environment and labour standards.

“But we do not see why the test of suitability in these areas should be adherence to EU law and submission to EU models of governance. The EU does not apply those principles to FTAs with other sovereign nations and they should not apply to a sovereign UK.”

He dismissed Brussels’ arguments that stricter measures are necessary because the UK is closer to the EU than countries such as Canada.

“Geography is no reason to undermine democracy,” Mr Gove said.

Boris Johnson threatens no-deal Brexit in June unless 'broad outline' agreement reached