“I’ve never felt it was a particularly credible negotiating threat,” Confederation of British Industry Director General Carolyn Fairbairn said in an interview. And while she declined to name specific politicians, it’s a shot across the bows of candidates including the favourite, Boris Johnson, who said this week that the option of a no-deal Brexit is a “vital tool of negotiation”. Brexit is already exacting a toll on UK business in the form of lost orders and customers, a drop-off in investment and increased costs for stockpiling and other no-deal preparations, Fairbairn said. The Institute of Directors warned that companies are under-estimating the threat of no-deal and the Federation of Small Businesses said the Tory leadership contest only adds to their confusion. Matthew Hancock – like Fairbairn – says no deal isn’t a credible threat, while Rory Stewart has said he’d entirely rule it out.

Source: The Irish Times June 14, 2019 07:07 UTC