Brexit has forced UK firms to pay tariffs on up to £9.5bn of exports to the EU despite Boris Johnson claiming he struck a “tariff-free” deal, an investigation has found.
More than one in eight traders say they have lost business since it came into force in January – some reporting their exports have disappeared completely, a TV documentary reveals.
More than a quarter of small firms say they are now considering moving some of their European operations out of Britain, while 16 per cent have already done so, Channel 4’s Dispatches programme will report.
The revelations come after the Treasury’s watchdog, the Office for Budget Responsibility, warned the Brexit trade deal will cut GDP by 4 per cent, swiping £80bn a year from the UK economy.
Ministers were also forced to concede that EU withdrawal was a key cause behind the autumn food and fuel shortages – which have put Christmas deliveries at risk.
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