JD Wetherspoon's Tim Martin makes case for 'no-deal' Brexit

Tim Martin, the Brexiteer chairman of pubs group JD Wetherspoon, on Wednesday revealed higher sales and threw his support behind Britain pulling out of the EU without a deal.

JD Wetherspoon saw comparable sales rise 6.9% in the 10 weeks to July 7, helping shares in the FTSE 250 firm leap 46p to 1454p.

It expects to meet forecasts for the year to July 28, but warned of one-off losses of around £3 million after selling some pubs at below their value on the balance sheet.

Outspoken Martin delivered another Brexit broadside which swamped details on trading.

He called for a no-deal “multi-deal”, “a multitude of deals agreed between individuals, businesses, governments and other organisations” in contrast to a UK-EU agreement.

He thinks this is “simpler” and “safer” compared to an overarching agreement between the UK and the EU.

JD Wetherspoon, which has close to 900 pubs, has made arrangements to replace some European goods. The firm last year swapped Moët & Chandon champagne for sparkling wines such as Whitedowns Rose Brut.