Scottish economist Tony Mackay has slammed the Fraser of Allander Institute’s (FAI) report on Brexit prepared for the Scottish Parliament.
He said the analysis for the parliament’s European committee was “poor” and “bizarre” and was “very poor value for money.”
Professor Mackay said the report had not made clear the timescale for the quoted 2% to 5% lowering of Scottish Gross Domestic Product (GDP) expected from the reduced level of trade with European Union countries.
It had also not taken into account the possible or likely implications for imports and for trade with the rest of the UK.
Trade with the rest of the UK is far more important than that with the EU, he stated.
“Consequently, the report gives a very one-sided and biased assessment of the likely implications of Brexit for the Scottish economy,” Professor Mackay stated.
The FAI report did consider the trading scenarios through which Norway and Switzerland traded with European Union countries as well as the World Trading Organisation model.
They were sensible and useful scenarios, but Professor Mackay described the FAI’s analysis of them as superficial and misleading in not offering timescales for Scottish GDP falls.
