UK’s flagship post-Brexit trade deal worth even less than previously thought, OBR says

Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch said the CPTPP deal would bring significant benefits for the UK economy. Photograph: Reuters

The UK’s flagship trans-Pacific trade deal, which was presented as a cornerstone of post-Brexit “global Britain”, will deliver even less benefit to the economy than the tiny uplift that was previously predicted, according to the Office for Budget Responsibility.

In a report accompanying last week’s autumn statement, the OBR said the UK’s entry into the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) would add just 0.04% to GDP in the “long run”, which it defines as after 15 years of membership.