London: Prime Minister Theresa May cautioned rebels in her party that unless they support her potential Brexit deal with the EU then they will face a potentially disorderly "no-deal" exit that the IMF said would make the UK significantly poorer.

There is, so far, no full exit agreement and some rebels in May's Conservative Party have threatened to vote down a deal if she clinches one.

"I think that the alternative to that will be having no deal," May told BBC TV.

The fate of May's government and her Brexit plan is in doubt because it is unclear whether she could command the 320 votes she needs in the House of Commons to approve a deal.

May said that if she got a deal, she thought parliament would ultimately approve it.

Recent signals from Brussels have buoyed hopes that the UK and the EU can agree and approve a proper divorce agreement before the UK leaves, though the sides are still divided on about one fifth of the detail of a deal. Reuters