The UK has slipped from fifth to seventh in exports of goods and services, figures from the Department for International Trade (DIT) have shown.
With exports between the UK and the European Union slumping significantly, Britain’s place as one of the world’s leading exporters has taken a significant hit – and is unlikely to recover any time soon.
Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch has been forced to defend figures that suggest joining a major Indo-Pacific bloc will boost the economy by just 0.08 per cent.
And even that could be an overestimation!
It has also been revealed that Britain could be 15 years late in achieving its £1 trillion annual export target after being hit by Brexit.
Projections from the DIT show the value of UK exports will not reach £1 trillion until 2035, based on current trends, with the total due to fall to £707 billion next year.
The pledge was first made by David Cameron in 2012, with the initial goal to hit the £1 trillion mark in 2020.
Boris Johnson later gave an end date of 2030 upon reviving the promise in 2021 as the centrepiece of a campaign called “Made in the UK, sold to the world”.