Europe
Beer mat Brexit: do the facts stack up?
The pub chain JD Wetherspoon has recently distributed beer mats in its pubs making a number of claims about the EU. Read
Fact checks
Trade
Fact checks around imports, exports and trade figures
Europe
This viral image showing the cost of different Brexit deals is wrong in a lot of ways
The government modelled the impact of different post-Brexit trade deals on the economy. They expect slower growth under each model, but the exact details remain unclear. Read
Fact checks
Europe
Is the UK going to become the EU’s tax collector?
The UK government has put forward proposals for a “facilitated customs arrangement” to replace the relationship we have with the EU through the customs union. We took a look at how it could work. Read
Fact checks
Europe
Does most UK trade happen outside of the EU and trade agreements?
Most of the UK’s trade is with countries we have EU trade agreements with, not under WTO rules. Read
Fact checks
Europe
What is a trade deficit and do we have one with the EU?
The UK had a £70 billion ‘trade deficit’ with the rest of the EU in 2017. Read
Fact checks
Economy, Business & Finance
Trading places: Who are the UK and Germany’s biggest trade partners?
The UK’s biggest export market is the USA. We exported 18% of our goods and services there in 2016, followed by Germany which took 9% of our exports. Our biggest trade deficit is with Germany. Read
Fact checks
Europe
Trade across the Irish Sea
In 2016, the majority of Northern Irish goods trade sent outside its borders went to Great Britain. Read
Fact checks
Economy, Business & Finance
Comparing economic growth across the world
The economies of East Asia, Southeast Asia, and South Asia grew by 5.6%, 5.3%, and 6.5% respectively in 2017. That’s significantly faster than the UK, USA, and EU. Read
Fact checks
Europe
Lorries at Dover
The Port of Dover has previously said that between 1% and 3% of lorries arriving at Dover are not from the EU, but we haven’t been able to confirm the source of the figure. Read
Fact checks
Europe
Over half of UK exports were via EU trade agreements in 2016
Just over half of UK exports were done via EU trade agreements in 2016. 43% of exports went to EU member states. Read
Fact checks
