LONDON, Sept. 4 (Xinhua) -- Britain is determined to continue its contact with European Union (EU) member states in an effort to reach a Brexit deal as talks intensify, British Prime Minister Theresa May said Tuesday.

"The PM and ministers agreed on the importance of continued engagement with member states as the talks enter a crucial and intense phase," May's spokesperson told reporters here after an agreement was reached on the subject between May and her ministers at a cabinet meeting earlier on Tuesday.

The statement came amid growing concerns across the country about a possible no-deal Brexit in March 2019, the date Britain is set to leave the bloc.

The British government is pushing hard to reach an agreement with the EU on the basis of the Chequers proposal, hammered out by May and her cabinet members in early July, but which is being heavily criticised by all sides inside the country.

The Chequers plan, already a compromise on Brexit, would keep Britain tied to EU rules for goods and agriculture after Brexit.

Michel Barnier, EU chief Brexit negotiator, said on Sunday in Germany that he was "strongly opposed" to May's Chequers proposals.

The British offer on customs was illegal and its suggestion of a "common rulebook" on goods would kill the European project, he said.