‘I sense Brussels is ready to be bold and ambitious’: Hope mixes with anger on Brexit’s fifth anniversary

John Springford, an economist at the Centre for European Reform, says: “There is little disagreement among economists that Brexit has hurt trade and investment – the argument is only about how much. The Office for Budget Responsibility says it sees no reason to change its view that in the long run the ­economy will be around 4% smaller than if Britain had stayed in.

“The data, which shows sizeable shortfalls in goods trade and ­investment compared to other advanced economies, suggests it is right to do so.”