Brexit’s many contradictions are coming to a head

AYEAR AGOEUEUEU , as Boris Johnson prepared to take Britain out of the European Union’s trading arrangements after an 11-month transition, he was on top of the world. The trade and co-operation agreement he had signed with the was, he crowed, “cakeist”—his term for deals that combine the having and eating of cake, in this case decent access to the single market and freedom to diverge from its rules. But as 2021 ended, little cake was to be had. A backbench rebellion, a stunning by-election loss and public anger at revelations that the prime minister and his colleagues partied during lockdowns in 2020 have hit his poll ratings. The year’s final blow came on December 18th, when David Frost, his chief negotiator, resigned, citing his frustration at the government’s failure to make progress on an ambitious post-Brexit agenda.Some of Mr Johnson’s difficulties are tied to his personal flaws: arrogance, sloppiness and a belief that rules are for little people. But Lord Frost, for all that his bellicose approach to the made progress harder, was right about his central charge. On , which the Conservatives promised would kick-start a national renewal, the government is adrift. Growth has been sluggish and ejection from the single market has, as expected, harmed the country’s prospects: government forecasters put the long- run hit to productivity at around 4%. So far the government has failed to identify policies that could come close to making up for that. To regain momentum it must make tough choices and face up to their consequences.