Worst of Brexit yet to come, warns Treasury minister

The majority of Brexit’s impact on Britain’s economy is still to be felt, a minister has warned. In a damning assessment of Britain’s departure from the European Union, Treasury minister Tulip Siddiq said 60 per cent of the impact of Brexit is yet to materialise.

- ARCHIE MITCHELL

The Treasury economic secretary cited Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) forecasts that the economy would shrink by 4 per cent in the long run due to Brexit. And Ms Siddiq said that Britain’s imports and exports would end up 15 per cent lower than they would be had the UK stayed in the EU.

This is the first time the government has quantified how much of the impact has so far been felt. Ms Siddiq cited further OBR analysis showing that just 40 per cent of the impact has materialised so far. Critics said the warning should act as an alert for ministers as Sir Keir Starmer pursues a post-Brexit reset in relations with EU leaders.

Best for Britain chief executive Naomi Smith called for the prime minister to pursue closer ties with the bloc in order to “trade our way to prosperity once more and mitigate against further Brexit-induced damage”. And Stella Creasy, chair of the Labour Movement for Europe, told