Brexit has made the UK's economic woes 'more severe', EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier claims

31 January 2023, 14:46 | Updated: 31 January 2023, 15:37

The problems facing the UK are more severe because of Brexit, the chief negotiator for the EU during the UK's departure has said.

The IMF said on Tuesday that the UK was set to become the weakest major economy in the world in 2023 - the only G7 nation to shrink this year.

It also comes against a backdrop of public sector strikes over pay and predictions that the UK is heading for a recession, with inflation still standing at more than 10%.

Speaking on the third anniversary of the UK leaving the EU, Michel Barnier told LBC's Andrew Marr that he thinks the "UK's current difficulties are more severe because of the Brexit because you are alone and not in the single market."

Michel Barnier on Andrew Marr

He added that even proponents of Brexit had not been able to give any evidence of the benefits of the UK leaving the EU.

"Nobody, even Mr. Farage has been able along these last five years to give me any proof of the added value of Brexit," he said. "The added value to be out of the union, out of the Customs Union, out of the single market. There is no added value to Brexit."

But he said he did not think Brexit had made the small boats migrant crisis worse.

In a wide-ranging interview, he also claimed that some Brexit supporters had wanted to "destroy the EU", alongside Russians and Americans.

Mr Barnier told Andrew: "I read a lot of information and articles and polemics about the support of some organisation linked to the Russia at the time of the Brexit campaign, the referendum campaign...

"I know that some Brexiters, with the support of some Americans, of some Russians wanted to destroy the EU."

Mr Barnier added that he "cannot agree" with comments made by the UK's former Brexit negotiator Lord Frost urging the government to push for a Northern Ireland Protocol that overrides the EU.

Addressing the comments, Mr Barnier said: "Lord Frost was the negotiator. He negotiated line by line, comma by comma, sentence by sentence, all the content of this treaty.

"We are speaking of the Treaty of November 19, it was the first treaty under institutional and political Brexit, including the Protocol for Ireland… Lord Frost knows, sentence by sentence the content of this treaty, there is no surprise.

"And what we asked for is just for the UK Government to respect its signature."

His comments came a day after a new poll showed Rishi Sunak significantly below Sir Keir Starmer as the politician the public sees as the most suitable to be Prime Minister.

Mr Barnier agreed, telling Andrew the Labour leader "has the capacity to be the Prime Minister".

He said: "I met several times Keir Starmer when he was on the side of the leader of the Labour Party, and I have a respect for him. I wrote my book; on our last meeting he seems to me that he has the capacity to be the Prime Minister of UK... And I think he's a European."

He explained this, adding: "I think that Keir Starmer as many, many politicians, even in the Tory Party, know that to face some global challenges, we have to work at a European level.

"Even if UK or Norway or Switzerland... we need to work as a continent to face some global challenges. Better together than alone."

Sir Keir has floated plans for dynamic alignment of various sectors with EU rules. Mr Barnier said in response: "The door is open for new relations.

"The door is open, but one point is clear, we will not accept any kind of cherry picking from the single market and Keir Starmer knows this point."

But Mr Barnier admitted the EU has changed since Brexit. Asked by Andrew for his message to the British people, Mr Barnier said: "The EU is no longer what you left. We have changed since the last three years for the economic and budgetary governance.

"We have changed as far as energy is concerned; we are change on the security matters. And we have to accelerate its change, just to give the proof to the citizens that the EU has an added value."

Watch the full interview on Tonight with Andrew Marr at 6pm.