Politics latest: ‘You have to make trade-offs’ – minister defends trade deal amid criticism of ‘outrageous’ measure

Is this new trade agreement a post-Brexit triumph or a miserly replacement for what we had with the EU? Depending on who you listen to, the UK’s accession into CPTPP is either a triumph for post-Brexit global Britain or a miserly replacement to what we had with the EU. So which is it? The honest answer – as unsatisfying as it may be – is both and neither. The government’s own impact assessment puts the economic boost of this trade deal at just 0.08%. Contrast that with the Office for Budget Responsibility’s forecast of a 4% reduction in economic growth…