Brexit is not delivering for British business and has left many feeling they are "banging their heads against a brick wall", according to a survey from the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC).
More than three quarters (77%) of firms surveyed, for which the Brexit deal is applicable, say it is not helping them increase sales or grow their business, the BCC reported.
As a result “businesses feel they are banging their heads against a brick wall as nothing has been done to help them”, according to Shevaun Haviland, the BCC's director general.
More than half (56%) of firms face difficulties adapting to the new rules for trading goods, the survey found, while almost half (45%) face difficulties adapting to the new rules for trading services, and a similar number (44%) report difficulties obtaining visas for staff.
The survey found UK firms faced significant challenges trying to use the Trade and Co-operation Agreement (TCA), which was agreed on Christmas Eve in 2020 to allow tariff-free trade with the EU once Brexit took effect.
A high proportion of businesses said they are still having major problems trying to use the deal to trade with Europe.
The BCC has sent the government a report setting out the main issues the TCA is causing with solutions to many of the problems.
Haviland said: “Businesses want political leaders on both sides to move on from the debates of the past and find ways to trade more freely.
“This means an honest dialogue about how we can improve our trading relationship with the EU.
“With a recession looming we must remove the shackles holding back our exporters so they can play their part in the UK’s economic recovery.
“If we don’t do this now then the long-term competitiveness of the UK could be seriously damaged.”