THE GUARDIAN: Former Bank of England policymaker Michael Saunders says leaving EU has ‘permanently damaged’ economy
Brexit is the ultimate reason why the UK now faces a fresh round of austerity, a former interest rate-setter at the Bank of England has said.
“The UK economy as a whole has been permanently damaged by Brexit,” Michael Saunders, who was an external member of the central bank’s monetary policy committee, said in an interview with Bloomberg TV.
“It’s reduced the economy’s potential output significantly, eroded business investment,” he said, adding: “If we hadn’t had Brexit, we probably wouldn’t be talking about an austerity budget this week.”
“The need for tax rises, spending cuts wouldn’t be there, if Brexit hadn’t reduced the economy’s potential output so much.” » | Anna Isaac, City editor | Monday, November 14, 2022
David Cameron made the first mistake in giving the country a referendum. Our membership of the European Union was far too complex and important to be put to the people, many of whom had no clue about, or understanding of, the complexities of the issue. Many politicians themselves didn't truly understand the matter; so how could the man in the street be expected to understand the issue?
Then there was that stupid idiot, Nigel Farage. He made a lot of noise, but made absolutely no sense whatsoever. He was full of hot air. But so many were taken in by his nonsense. But all he actually did was poison people’s minds and cause damage to the UK economy. Farage is a perfect example of the proverb learnt by most even in junior school, namely that ‘Empty vessels make the most noise.’ This proverb means that that those with the least wisdom or knowledge have most to say about the subject. We would all be better off today if that clown had remained silent. – © Mark Alexander
