Brexit will only make the trade deficit larger

YOUR correspondent R Hughes (Write Back, August 30) likens Brexit to the schism with Rome by Henry VIII’s Acts of Supremacy of 1534. There the similarity ends, I’m afraid.

While it is true that the UK, chiefly England, prospered after the Reformation, other more important factors were largely responsible and it took centuries to achieve, culminating in the powerful, manufacturing-based economy of the 19th century.

For example, immigrants, such as Huguenots in the 17th century, brought skills to establish cloth-weaving, banking, printing, silversmithing, clock and watchmaking — the latter important for navigation.

However, in the 21st century, the UK is merely a service economy and a net importer, rather than exporter, with a huge trading deficit. According to the Office of National Statistics, the total UK trade deficit widened by £4.7bn to £8.6bn in the three months to June 2018, due mainly to falling goods exports and rising goods imports.

Removing the effect of inflation, the total trade deficit widened by £4.1bn in the three months to June 2018; falling goods export volumes were the main factor, as prices generally increased.

The trade in goods deficit widened £2.9bn with countries outside the EU and £2.6bn with the EU in the three months to June 2018.

Falling car and aircraft exports and rising imports of unspecified goods (including non-monetary gold) to and from non-EU countries were the leading factors in the widening of the total trade deficit in the three months to June 2018.

Excluding erratic commodities (mainly aircraft and non-monetary gold), the deficit widened £2.2bn to £9bn in the three months to June 2018.

Rising exports for both goods and services led to a £6.2bn narrowing of the total trade deficit in the 12 months to June 2018.

Exports and imports of goods to and from the EU both increased by more compared with non-EU countries in the 12 months to June 2018.

Revisions to the total trade balance (goods and services) for April and May 2018 were downward revisions of £0.5bn and £0.4bn respectively. Thus, Brexit will only make the trade deficit larger, by allowing even more cheap, low-quality goods to be imported from the People’s Republic of China and such delightful commodities as chlorinated chicken and hormone beef.

Brexit is a real disaster to the UK — it will only benefit the US and China. The UK needs to stop importing everything and start manu- facturing and exporting. It needs the single market and immigration to maintain and develop its knowledge-based economy.