Tuesday saw the Chancellor present his Spring Statement, outlining the latest budget forecasts.

His statement came in the wake of comments by the Prime Minister that Brexit would lead to a lessening of the UK’s trade relationship with the EU, and the Chancellor’s admission that there would be “trade-offs” in the new relationship.

It also came just days after publication of the Government’s secret Brexit impact analysis, which showed that Brexit under every scenario would make the UK worse off.

The truth is that Brexit is already damaging the economy.

Growth: Before the referendum Britain led the G7 economies in economic growth; now we are bottom.

At the Autumn Budget the OBR revised down growth prospects even further, to 1.3% in 2019, down from previous expectations of 1.7 per cent. The downgrade in 2020 was even larger, from 1.9 per cent to 1.3 per cent. The IMF is currently forecasting UK growth trailing that of Greece over the next five years.

Inflation: Inflation remains at three per cent. Wages aren’t going up but prices are - so families are worse off. The cost of food and other goods is soaring as a result of the fall in the value of the pound, which remains around 15 per cent below pre-referendum levels.

Exports: Hopes that the weak pound since the referendum would increase exports, giving an economic uplift to offset a downturn in consumer spending, took another knock with the January 2018 trade figures.

The trade deficit in goods increased further, to £36.5bn in the three months to January 2018, with goods imports increasing by 1.7 per cent and exports decreasing by 1.3 per cent.

Investment: Investment in manufacturing and other sectors is down. For example, investment in the auto sector fell from £2.5bn in 2015 to £1.66bn last year, and slid to just £322m in the first six months of 2017, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.

Borrowing: By 2020, the overall black hole in public finances will be £122bn - with £58.6bn a direct result of Brexit, according to OBR.

So Brexit can be summed up as follows: gains from new trade deals will be offset by losses from putting up barriers to the EU; some new trade will involve scrapping crucial regulations and standards (eg in food and environment); the extra borrowing and costs will completely negate the savings of no more EU budget payments (so no more money for the NHS); and while all the scenarios are bad, the government’s is one of worst.