AT the risk of (again) incurring the waspish wrath of our most vocal Brexit-supporting readers, I have to say, I told you so.

Our councils and government are preparing for the worst. In the event of a no-deal exit from the European Union, on Halloween, of all days, the authorities are preparing for the very real possibilities of a massive hike in fuel costs, shortages of essential supplies – we're talking food and medicine – and critical shortages in services for the most vulnerable in society, for example at food banks. A Freedom of Information request to Darlington Borough Council this week unearthed its preparations and risk management for the worst outcome of a no-deal.

Other councils were more tight-lipped, but you can imagine the concerns are the same. A leaked government memo earlier this month showed preparations for Operation Yellowhammer, which reflected the same concerns, including the worry of a hard border in Northern Ireland and a 'three-month meltdown' at ports which would not be able to cope with extra threats.

Civil servants insisted the memo was 'not Project Fear' but highlighted possibilities with a very real chance of happening. Last year, a leaked police chiefs' memo showed how forces were preparing for civil unrest due to problems arising from a no-deal Brexit. Then, under Theresa May, those problems seemed less likely.

However, with Boris Johnson now ing the sinister stroke of asking the Queen to dissolve Parliament for a month – seemingly in order to get a no-deal Brexit through with the minimum amount of debate – civil unrest in the wake of the undemocratic move seems increasingly likely, with protesters already talking about holding another general strike to stand up for democracy.

Short-term civil disorder is, therefore, very likely to happen, but even further down the line, once many of the leave supporters in the region wake up to the truth, that they have voted away their own jobs, we are likely to see more unrest.

Thousands of jobs and tens of billions of pounds could be lost in the North-East region from Brexit alone, more with the ongoing uncertainty of having no withdrawal agreement in place.

It is cash and jobs the region can ill afford to lose. The pound has already dived in value again yesterday after Number 10's decision, while Bank of England Governor Mark Carney has also warned that, as a worst-case scenario, our food shopping bills could increase by as much as ten per cent.

The only arguments I hear from the Brexiteers in favour of leaving the EU are relatively unimportant ones about sovereignty, about Britain being 'Great' once more, about not liking decisions being made in Brussels, about not liking free movement in Europe, not wanting to be pushed around by anyone else, but underneath and between the lines of most of these arguments is the deafening roar of xenophobia and ignorance. Why are we leaving, risking mass unemployment, food shortages, economic collapse, for these paltry reasons?

If anything could turn me into a monarchist now it would be for the Queen to declare a constitutional crisis and call a general election now. Let's get someone sensible back in Downing Street and really make Britain great again.