Trade will go on, come what May

The settled will of the people of Great Britain is to follow the path of Brexit. I have always viewed the outcome of last June’s EU referendum as a collective rush of blood to the head but, regardless of my view, the only practical way forward is to make the best of the situation that presents itself.

But it is fair to say we didn’t get off to the most promising of starts on the Brexit journey. The political headless chicken dance that followed June’s vote will surely go down in the history books as one of the UK’s lowest moments.

Only the Trump circus across the Pond saved the UK from greater ridicule as our political paymasters did the hokey cokey, turned around and promptly exited stage left.

But that’s irrelevant now. Theresa May is the last woman standing, Brexit is happening and we are at a make-orbreak junction in the road for this country.

Firstly, forget everything you’ve heard from the politicos and the massed ranks of ‘flannalysts’ who have spent months telling us what they think Brexit might be, without any firm knowledge of what it will actually be.

Forget hard and soft Brexit and, please, forget the red, white and blue Brexit – that ridiculous pat phrase Mrs May resorted to using when neither she nor her Whitehall mandarins had a handle on what Brexit actually meant.

Having erased the background noise, listen up as we are now getting to the meat and bones of what Brexit means for Britain.

In the biggest speech of her life yesterday, Mrs May outlined plans for a clean break from Europe and to let the UK take its chances as a truly independent nation on the global stage.

Her position is perhaps the truest reflection of what the people of the UK voted for on June 23.

As she has repeatedly stated, ‘Brexit means Brexit’ and it looks like Mrs May is bent on dispensing with the main EU crutches upon which we currently rely.

That means a full withdrawal from the single market into which almost 50% of UK exported goods flows in anticipation of the establishment of a new, reciprocal, free trade agreement.

It also means abandonment of the current customs union that allows tariff-free trade into the EU, again with a view to agreeing a new relationship.

These issues and many others will be difficult to manage and will, inevitably, bring economic pain, frustration and uncertainty. But Brexit is not a one-way street. The decisions made by Number 10 in the coming months will be as closely watched by business leaders in Berlin, Paris and Rome as they are by counterparts in Britain’s boardrooms.

Remember, the Germans don’t want to see car exports to a highly lucrative market jeopardised, and luxury goods makers in France and Italy want to maintain access to high-flying customers in London and beyond.

Whatever emerges from the Brexit wash, what is certain is that business will go on and the UK will continue to sell into Europe and vice-versa.

It is a trade link that will not be severed, but may be significantly interrupted in the years to come.

Mrs May is choosing to view that as an opportunity to broaden the UK’s global trade horizons, and the US under President Trump may well provide shelter in the Brexit storm.

The immediate reaction to Mrs May’s speech was interesting, though.

North of the border, where First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has repeatedly warned of consequences from a bad Brexit deal, the response from the business community was uncharacteristically muted.

Business owners simply want to get on with the day-to-day and, for them, Brexit remains a distant sideshow. It is business as usual. Come what May.

Mrs May has decided to go for a clean break from Europe and let the UK take its chance as a truly independent nation on the global stage

Picture: PA. Prime Minister Theresa May.