In the months after Boris Johnson signed his post-Brexit trade deal with the European Union, the coronavirus masked the economic damage of leaving the bloc. As the pandemic drags on, the cost is becoming clearer -- and voters are noticing.
Brexit has been a drag on growth. It brought new red tape on commerce between Britain and its largest and closest market, and removed a large pool of EU labor from the country on which many businesses had come to rely. The combination has exacerbated supply chain shortages, stoked inflation, and hampered trade.
