HMRC impact assessment of a no-deal Brexit scenario predicts an administrative burden on UK businesses from additional import and export declarations of £6.5 billion a year. It also estimates a similar figure for EU counterparts involved in UK trade.
gov.uk/government/pub…
gov.uk/government/pub…
So that's £6.5 billion in additional red tape per year, thanks to Brexit, for literally nothing whatsoever in return. Putting it in perspective, that's more than 2/3 of our current EU membership costs, burnt up in administrative overheads. Like driving with the handbrake on...
BTW, should go without saying but I'll say it anyway: for low-margin products, EU counterparts are likely to switch to alternative suppliers elsewhere in the EU. No extra red tape, no fiddling and delays at customs. UK suppliers will be frozen out.
