Our MP, Sarah Wollaston, is quite right to warn of the dangers of a hard Brexit, or indeed of any Brexit.

There are only three outcomes from the present situation: Remain in the EU; conclude a deal which gives the UK some degree of co-operation with the EU and access to its markets; or leave the EU with no deal.

The first is politically impossible without a referendum, the second is problematic in that the closer the UK remains to the present agreements the more it is disliked by Brexiteers and the third results in chaos. If the UK leaves the EU without a deal the UK will cease to have any agreements with the EU to cover standards of food, agricultural products, fish and goods; recognition of professional and trade qualifications, protection of intellectual property, data transfer, rights of ownership both corporate and asset and the UK’s involvement in EU projects.

This will have a serious impact on our exports, both in goods and services and it is not clear how this would be beneficial to the UK or its citizens.

One amendment to the Withdrawal Bill asked the government to guarantee to protect equality rights gained from the Charter of Fundamental Rights, which covers everything from women’s rights to worker’s rights; the Government refused and Parliament supported the Government. This must raise the question, even in the dullest mind, of what will happen to equality rights in a country that has no written constitution like the UK.

The UK’s membership of the EU also gives UK citizens travel privileges such as visa free travel to the EU and other countries, entitlement to medical care in the EU, use of UK driving licences almost worldwide, enhanced UK-duty free allowances on return from an EU country and regulated mobile roaming charges while in the EU.

Net contributions to the EU amount to only 0.7 per cent of UK Government spending. So if all that money was spent on healthcare the budget for health would rise from 20.3 per cent of Government spending to 21 per cent, but you won’t see that on the side of a bus.

In short we have a deal with the EU that cannot be bettered by leaving, through which we not only trade with the rest of the world but also acquire many of our rights and travel privileges and that costs the UK very little.

We have a lot to lose.

SJ Dowden

Rectory Lane, Stoke Fleming