The vision of post-Brexit Britain was one of international trade deals that would propel the country into a new era of prosperity. That vision of “Global Britain” is now dead. Thomas Sampson argues that the only viable alternative is a closer trade relationship with the EU.

'...my self-imposed task of documenting the Brexit impact has become a challenge not so much because of the difficultly of weighing up the positives and the negatives, but rather due to the sheer amount of damage Brexit is doing up and down the country, left, right and centre, and across sectors.'

The CBI has recently called for a new trade deal with the European Union and Rishi Sunak saw himself forced to rule out the Swiss option. These are just examples of how little the UK understands how the European Union and the single market work. Nicholas Sowels lists many of the erroneous assumptions Britain has made ... ignoring that the four freedoms of movement ... are not just abstractions.

Liz Truss is campaigning as a committed Brexiter to become Conservative leader. Six years ago, her view was different. ... Her support for an “In” vote was plainly wholehearted. Her analysis was clear and, as events have shown, correct.

It’s probably fair to say that Owen Paterson was not a household name until the events that led to his resignation last week. However, he played a significant role in the Brexit saga, albeit of a particular sort.

Bob Hancké reports on a recent study which suggests not only that the agreement has made trade in goods between the UK and the EU very difficult, but that it has also severely limited Britain’s ability to conclude free trade agreements with the rest of the world.

Freedom of movement between the EU and the UK is now a thing of the past. New border barriers are in place, or soon will be. People, goods, service, and data now need permissions to cross this new border.

Brexiters are often accused of living in the past. That is manifest in the now recurring Brexiter response to concerns about Brexit: ‘but we did perfectly well before’.

The most important Brexit event of the week came and went with relatively little fanfare, yet it marks a significant moment.

'For at the same time as attempting to relegate Brexit to distant memory, the government is also claiming all kinds of benefits from “having left the EU”.'

While politicians fail to understand the basics of the Single Market and customs unions, retailers are spending millions mitigating the risk of a ’no-deal’ Brexit – this cannot continue.

Another day, another ‘no breakthrough on the backstop‘ story. At the eleventh hour, a dose of reality seems to be setting in over the question of the Northern Ireland Brexit backstop.

There is now a dangerous void of leadership and policy at the heart of British politics. Indeed it would hardly be an exaggeration to say that, as regards Brexit, the UK no longer has a functioning government. There are no obvious solutions in sight, and the outcome is completely unpredictable.

I loathe the term ‘World Trade Deal’ more than words can express. It is everything I hate about trade politics. It combines a pithy soundbite politicians with an agenda can deliver with confidence, with a layer of deception reliant on the complexity of trade to pass unchallenged on Sunday talk shows.