SCOTLAND risks being thrown into a “deep recession” if the UK crashes out of the European Union without a deal, it has been warned.
SNP Brexit Secretary Mike Russell said leaving without an agreement would have a “severe impact” on the labour market, resulting in job losses and closures.
READ MORE: Donald Tusk: There's a special place in hell for people who promoted Brexit
It came as European Council president Donald Tusk said there was a “special place in hell” for those who promoted Brexit “without even a sketch of a plan [of] how to carry it out safely”.
Addressing MSPs in Holyrood, Mr Russell said: “A no-deal Brexit has the potential to generate a a significant economic shock which could tip the Scottish economy into recession – and potentially into a deep recession.
“It would also have a severe impact on the labour market, resulting in potential job losses, business relocations and closures, underemployment and a reduction in recruitment.”
He said smaller firms would likely be the worst hit, while Scottish ministers are also concerned about the prospect of “severe delays” to freight traffic through Dover and the Channel Tunnel.
Meanwhile, fears are growing over “significant price increases” in the event of a no-deal Brexit, particularly in relation to food and drink.
Mr Russell added: “The Governor of the Bank of England has identified potential rises of between five and 10 per cent.”
READ MORE: Hundreds of Police Scotland officers to go on standby amid Brexit fears
Mr Tusk provoked controversy after he condemned Brexit-supporting politicians during a press conference in Brussels.
He said: “I've been wondering what that special place in hell looks like, for those who promoted Brexit without even a sketch of a plan [of] how to carry it out safely.”
Last week, Scotland’s top police officer said ruling out a hard Brexit or delaying the UK’s exit would reduce the “imminent pressure” on officers and allow for more detailed planning.
Chief Constable Iain Livingstone said the force was currently readying itself for a no-deal scenario and would have to forge a number of “sub-optimal workarounds” to replace cross-border legal measures built up by the EU.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel