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Between its revolving-door government and a worsening energy crunch, Britain faces a new crisis almost every day.hey did you see former health secretary Matt Hancock on the reality show I’m a celebrity got me out of here? Just when it looked unlikely that things could get any worse, an old political wound is opening.
Lord Simon Wolfson, chief executive of retailer Next and a vocal Brexiteer, told the BBC he believed the UK was grappling with a labour shortage and needed more migrant workers, concluding: “This is definitely not the Brexit I want. .” At least 49 percent would agree.
The belated Brexit ripples
The UK left the EU on January 31, 2020, but the economic impact of Brexit has largely gone unnoticed due to the pandemic. It is now increasingly clear that Brexit is exacerbating Britain’s woes.
Up to 430,000 EU citizens were granted UK work visas each year until 2020, compared with 43,000 in 2021. But immigration isn’t the only Brexit-related economic rebound:
- Compared with the rest of the G7, the UK’s post-lockdown trade recovery is noticeably flat. Instead of cutting red tape in Brussels, as promised by Brexiteers, Brexit has increased bureaucracy and made trade with EU countries difficult, small business owners told the FT. Financial Times.
- There was also a scenario of Brexit gloom in the financial sector. Jerome Kemp, a former executive at global investment bank Citi, told Bloomberg in late October that derivatives trading was shifting from London to EU neighbors, particularly France and Germany. “The reality of Brexit is starting to affect market infrastructure,” Kemp said.
On the bright side: The UK and EU appear to be moving closer to an agreement on how trade should be conducted in Northern Ireland, which shares a border with EU member Ireland. Let’s hope the luck of the Irish carries it through.