Wednesday, March 02, 2022
More Brexit failures
There isn't one crisis, there are several, including a war in Europe that has the potential to spread, the suffering of thousands of Ukrainians and those seeking refuge from war, and of course the continuing pandemic, and Brexit.
The Independent reports that the impact of Brexit on our economy has led to UK food and drink exports to the EU plunging by almost a quarter in the nine months after Boris Johnson’s deal took effect, compared to pre-pandemic levels, with a loss of £2.4bn in sales.
The paper says that exports to big European markets were hit hard, with sales to Spain down by more than half (50.6 per cent) on 2019 levels, Germany by 44.5 per cent and Italy by 43.3 per cent, according to the Food and Drink Federation. Sales to the industry’s largest overseas market, the Republic of Ireland, were down by more than a quarter:
And industry leaders warned that the downturn could be “here to stay”, in a blow not only to Mr Johnson’s “global Britain” aspirations but also his plans to “level up” disadvantaged parts of the country.
The FDF said that the slump in sales could be blamed both on new barriers to trade created by Brexit and Mr Johnson’s Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) with Brussels, and on the global Covid-19 pandemic.
But figures showed that UK sales of food and drink products to non-EU markets rose by 11 per cent in the first three quarters of 2021, suggesting that Brexit is to blame for the lion’s share of lost trade with Europe. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) were worst affected.
In total, UK food and drink exports were down £2.7bn (15.9 per cent) in the first three quarters of 2021, compared to the same period in 2019. The drop in sales to the EU totalled £2.4bn (23.7 per cent).
Now that wasnt on the side of the Brexit bus, was it?
The Independent reports that the impact of Brexit on our economy has led to UK food and drink exports to the EU plunging by almost a quarter in the nine months after Boris Johnson’s deal took effect, compared to pre-pandemic levels, with a loss of £2.4bn in sales.
The paper says that exports to big European markets were hit hard, with sales to Spain down by more than half (50.6 per cent) on 2019 levels, Germany by 44.5 per cent and Italy by 43.3 per cent, according to the Food and Drink Federation. Sales to the industry’s largest overseas market, the Republic of Ireland, were down by more than a quarter:
And industry leaders warned that the downturn could be “here to stay”, in a blow not only to Mr Johnson’s “global Britain” aspirations but also his plans to “level up” disadvantaged parts of the country.
The FDF said that the slump in sales could be blamed both on new barriers to trade created by Brexit and Mr Johnson’s Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) with Brussels, and on the global Covid-19 pandemic.
But figures showed that UK sales of food and drink products to non-EU markets rose by 11 per cent in the first three quarters of 2021, suggesting that Brexit is to blame for the lion’s share of lost trade with Europe. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) were worst affected.
In total, UK food and drink exports were down £2.7bn (15.9 per cent) in the first three quarters of 2021, compared to the same period in 2019. The drop in sales to the EU totalled £2.4bn (23.7 per cent).
Now that wasnt on the side of the Brexit bus, was it?
