General · 24 June 2026
Brexit cost small firms £250,000, many quit
Ten years after the Brexit vote, thousands of small businesses have either stopped exporting to the EU or gone out of business entirely. Exporters say red tape and rising costs were ignored by a government focused on big companies when designing the hard Brexit. One cheesemaker, Simon Spurrell, lost £250,000 and his business, calling it the 'biggest self-harm' any government inflicted.
Reported by Guardian · How we write briefs