CBI president warns of ‘mother of all hangovers’ post-Brexit

THE CBI president has likened Brexit to the collapse of Lehman Brothers and warned the UK “could wake up with the mother of a hangover on 24 June”.

Paul Drechsler was visiting businesses in the Midlands this week ahead of the organisation’s regional dinner. While he talked up the opportunities that the Midlands has – “it is an area that has all the ingredients for success”, he said – Drechsler made it clear the result of next week’s referendum could have a significant negative impact on the economy.

“The biggest concern I have is the scale of impact of Brexit in the short to medium-term,” he said. “I think that’s going to give us unexpected downside consequences that will seriously affect jobs and opportunities.

“It’s a bit like Lehman Brothers – no-one understood the consequences of not letting them continue. If we had, we might have done differently.

“We could wake up with the mother of a hangover on June 24.”

The CBI has estimated that post-Brexit there would be 1m fewer jobs in the economy than it forecasts if the UK stays in the European Union.

He added: “Business doesn’t go looking for trouble. We don’t create risks unnecessarily.

“What is certain about Brexit, this is a totally unnecessary risk that we should not be taking.”