‘UNREALISTIC' Spain mocks May's Brexit plan and says UK economic model is 'BROKEN'
THE UK’s Brexit strategy is “unrealistic” and its economic model is “broken”, an influential Spanish economist has claimed.
May: No deal for Britain is better than a bad deal
Alberto Gallo condemned Prime Minister Theresa May’s 12 point bargaining strategy for leaving the European Union as being “unilateral and unrealistic” with the country facing a “complex scenario on it way out of the EU".
In a furious rant, the head of Macrostrategies at Algebris Investments and Portfolio Manager for Alegebris Macro Credit Fund also claimed a figure on the cost of a ‘hard’ Brexit to Britain of £140billion - equivalent to 7.5 percent of the country’s GDP.
Mr Gallo also attacked Mrs May’s plans as being “a fantastic tale” where she hoped to achieve “economic nirvana”.
Mrs May’s hopes of pulling out of the single market and agreeing a new Free Trade Agreement was seen as being “undoable” as Mr Gallo stated that the UK wanted to only adhere to some of the EU’s rules and regulations whilst also not wanting to contribute to the EU budget.
Mr Gallo, writing in El Confidencial, also stated that the Prime Minister’s plan to gradually introduce a new relationship with the EU bloc, rather than an abrupt halt, was deemed to be “uncertain”.
Cold water was also poured on the Prime Minister’s veiled threats - such as the possibility of turning the UK into a tax haven as well as introducing retaliatory measures for EU exports - as Mr Gallo considered the measures as not being “credible”.
Mr Gallo also slammed the UK’s economic model was fundamentally flawed due to its economy was focused on finance and services. While Mr Gallo conceded that the country had benefitted from these areas he said that because of the shift in the economic focus the UK had now become reliant on the very countries it now wanted to break away from.
Regarding the question of immigration he condemned the UK’s stance saying the country had been made into one being against foreigners and lacked a vision of the future.
He cited Britain as becoming more more divided rather than united, adding that “Brexit is a symptom of deep social and economic inequality.”
He said: “Outside of London's global business, many have been left out of the system and voted for something politicians presented to them as a simple way to improve their fate, repair public accounts and pursue the interests of the British. But it was not the truth.”
He added: “Theresa May could have warned citizens of Brexit's costs: job losses, inflation and prolonged uncertainty, especially for the poorest.
“Instead, she called for unity and she continued to promise an economic nirvana at the end of the trip - while implementing policies that will bring exactly the opposite.
“A declining pound and a growing interest in debt show that investors, myself among them, are sceptical.
“It will soon be obvious to everyone that the ship is heading straight to an iceberg. At that point, it may be too late to turn around.”