234. The best approach to foreign trade

Would the UK be better off with tariffed trade with Europe? The public discourse seems to be focused on how to remove tariffs, but Prof Steve Keen argues that if they are sufficiently high they will encourage domestic production across a variety of industry sectors. The more complex the mix of industries the more self sufficient an economy becomes, which also increases the potential for developing a broader range of exports. The only limitation is scale – but with 65 million people, is Britain big enough to go it alone? Phil Dobbie points to countries with high GDP that have a hefty reliance on foreign trade.