Johnson's Brexit plan comes under attack from Westminster, Dublin and Brussels

Varadkar said: "Our objective is very clear -- we don't want to see any customs posts between north and south nor do we want to see any tariffs or restrictions on trade between north and south."

Johnson faced MPs in the House of Commons to urge them to support the deal which he says resolved the controversial issue over the fate of the border between Northern Ireland and Ireland.

And he made it clear in his speech that if the European Union (EU) rejects the proposals, Britain will leave the EU on October 31 with no deal.

The day's development also saw a war of words between Dublin and Belfast.

That came after Ireland's deputy prime minister and foreign minister Simon Coveney reacted to Johnson's proposals, saying: "If that is the final proposal there will be no deal, there are a number of fundamental problems with that proposal. There are elements of this proposal that simply will not be part of any deal."

Coveney said in the Irish Parliament in Dublin there will be no agreement unless Britain makes further changes to the alternative backstop plan.