The EU won’t want barriers to its food and wine trade with Britain

SIR – Your excellent columnist Christopher Booker has recently developed an idée fixe that Theresa May’s Brexit team does not understand the danger to British trade of a “hard” Brexit. But he chose a weird example to demonstrate his fear, arguing that there will be ruinous barriers to food trade if the Government does not listen to him (Review, February 19).

The EU sells more than €40 billion of food exports to Britain, some two and a half times more than we sell to the EU. On top of that, Britain is a vast market for French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and German wine.

The notion that French beef, grain and dairy farmers, Dutch cheese makers, the politically ferocious farm exporters of Bavaria, central European corn-growers and hundreds of wine and olive oil makers are going to allow their politicians to erect food and drink trade barriers to impede their massive British market, as Mr Booker appears to contend, is decidedly odd. Andrew Knight Compton Scorpion, Warwickshire SIR – The recent trade deal between the EU and Canada is expected to boost bilateral trade by £30 billion – and this does not involve a single market, a customs union, free movement of people, payments for access to the single market, jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice or the application of EU regulations other than to trade between the EU and Canada.

This seems an obvious starting point and model for an EU-UK trade deal, after Article 50 is invoked. Andrew White Alton, Hampshire

SIR – Sir John Major appears to be attempting to resurrect Project Fear, calling Brexit “an historic mistake” (report, February 28).

That ship has long since sailed. Britain is now embracing Project Cheer – yet he dismisses that optimism with defeatist gloom.

We are fortunate that he is not involved in the EU negotiations, since his approach would ensure the downbeat outcome that he has predicted. David Saunders Sidmouth, Devon

SIR – I do not accept Neil Russell’s claim (Letters, February 26) that those who voted to leave the EU fully understood what they were voting for.

Many believed that Brexit meant an end to immigration, unaware that more than half comes from outside the EU. Many more (myself included) fell for the lie that Brexit would mean an extra £350 million a week for the NHS.

Nigel Farage said a narrow victory for Remain would not be the end of his campaign, and Ukip would fight for a second referendum. Why are the Brexiteers so afraid of one now? Could it be that they know the public have realised they were deceived? If the Brexiteers really believe in democracy, then once the Brexit deal is agreed we should have one final and binding referendum to put the matter to rest. Anthony Taylor York