What benefits of Brexit does Michael Gove claim when debating Alastair Campbell?

Michael Gove argued the real economic point of Brexit was the freedom to regulate differently, with gains that build over time. He named data and AI, gene editing and selective breeding, life sciences, tech and financial services. He also cited Labour taking VAT off energy bills and adding it to private school fees, which he said the EU would not allow, and noted Britain has grown faster than Germany since 2016. He accepts the upfront hit from new customs barriers was real.

• Alastair Campbell disputed the VAT examples and pointed to a GDP hit of 6 to 8 percent according to experts.
• Campbell cited 39.2 million customs declarations costing British business about £7.5 billion a year.

▸In their words

“The principal point of Brexit was greater regulatory freedom and autonomy.” Michael Gove · at 14:40 — open in the transcript →

Source: our own transcription of the episode. The full conversation is on The Rest Is Politics (2026-10-07). Read the whole episode summary →

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