‘Disaster’ is right: Brexit is a self-inflicted wound that cuts dangerously deep

The effect of leaving the EU’s single market has affected UK trade more acutely than first estimated, the Bank of England’s Andrew Bailey has said. Photograph: Carl Court/Getty Images

Whenever Andrew Bailey, the governor of the Bank of England, talks about the economy, he is forced to mention the toll taken by Brexit.

Business leaders, initially reluctant to criticise the Tory decision to quit the EU, have begun to find their voice. Most recently, leading City figure Guy Hands called Brexit a “complete disaster” and a “bunch of total lies” that has harmed large parts of the economy.