Forget Brexit concerns, it's time for Brifta

"BREXIT" was the British referendum vote to exit the European Union (EU). Brifta would be a British free trade area. It could begin with a series of bilateral free trade deals. Britain would drop all tariffs and quotas on trade in return for reciprocal treatment. There would be no shortage of potential partners. Australia is already knocking on the door. New Zealand will doubtless follow. China has shown an interest.

Bilateral arrangements could rapidly become multilateral. The UK is the world's fifth-largest economy measured in current dollar GDP. It is also the fifth-largest importer. British GDP exceeds the combined GDP of the bottom 129 (out of 189) International Monetary Fund member countries. Few countries will ignore the attraction of open entry into so large a market. If the EU imposes punitive terms on trade with Britain, the Germans, French and most others will rue the day.

The opportunity is palpable. Political uncertainty has diminished with pragmatic Theresa May replacing David Cameron as prime minister. George Osborne's departure from the Treasury bodes well for a sensible approach to public sector investment and debt (as I argued on July 27 concerning social housing). There has been no financial market Armageddon, no systemic crisis. Sterling is moderately less overvalued. UK share prices are back where they were. The Bank of England has found little need to do anything yet about the non-existent financial crisis it feared.