Parliament is "blissfully unaware" that civil servants rather than ministers will be handed control over key issues under the Brexit deal, the MP for Raleigh and Wickford has warned.

Brexiteer Mark Francois used an urgent question to raise concerns over how the joint committee responsible for the implementation and application of the Withdrawal Agreement, co-chaired by the UK and EU, will operate.

He said the committee's co-chairman can make "legally-binding decisions" in its name by an exchange of notes "without any recourse to, or consent from, Parliament".

Mr Francois added: "I believe this has been extremely cleverly drafted to hand control of future elements of this country's destiny deliberately to unelected civil servants rather than to ministers, civil

servants who are unanswerable to this House of Commons in a way that ministers are."

He went on: "At present, Parliament seems blissfully unaware of the ability if the joint committee to take legally-binding decisions relating to any future aspect of the treaty or the future relationship effectively above Parliament's head.

"There are clear issues of accountability to Parliament which, as far as I'm aware, have never been debated in the House at all."

Brexit minister Kwasi Kwarteng, in his reply, said: "The assumption underlying his question, as it seemed to me, was that the joint committee was some subterranean plot, wire pullers, an attempt to somehow subvert the will of this House or subvert our democracy.

"He will understand, as will the House, that the structure of a joint committee is very common in international agreements.

"An international agreement with two parties has to have a point of arbitration and the joint committee comprising representatives of the UK and EU - it's separate to the arbitration panel, that's true - but it

will decide and govern the implementation and application of the Withdrawal Agreement.

"This is entirely in keeping with what happens in international treaties."

He added: "The joint committee cannot simply act if the UK does not agree and on that point, in terms of the UK Government's relationship with this Parliament, there will be full and ample opportunity - as we have done in the last four months - to debate provisions or recommendations of the joint committee."

The Government is being urged to do more to explain its preparations for leaving the EU without a deal by a Brexit-backing MP, who said the "dire predictions of economic gloom" such a scenario would create are causing people concern.

Conservative John Barron, MP for Basildon and Billericay, made the point during an urgent Question in the Commons he was granted to discuss no-deal planning.

He said "reports in the media, and indeed some reports emanating from this place, suggesting that a no-deal Brexit will cause a profound economic shock, mirror the incorrect warnings before the 2016

referendum".

Accusing Labour MPs of dismissing this, he added: "Actually, for a lot of people sitting in their homes, these dire predictions of economic gloom, which are unfounded, are causing concerns."

In response, Brexit minister Chris Heaton-Harris listed off a raft of Government plans, including "over 550 no-deal communications sent out since August 2018", signing international agreements, 11,000 people working on EU exit policy, 150,000 businesses contacted and TV adverts starting from today.

He added: "The Government has been preparing assiduously and quietly behind the scenes for no-deal because we want to get a deal over the line."

Speaker John Bercow has granted Labour's application for an emergency Commons debate on allowing MPs to consider the length and purpose of the extension of the Article 50 process requested by the Government.

The debate will take place for up to three hours on Wednesday at approximately 3.20pm.