Professor Hestermeyer states ‘Gone are the days in which tariffs made trade almost impossible and free trade largely meant lowering tariffs. Today, regulations rule supreme and they are complex.’

He argues that the concept of free trade cannot ignore the challenge of regulation. ‘Enabling free trade nowadays includes co-operation on regulation, to ensure that our partners cannot lower standards to achieve a competitive advantage. Trade today can only be free if it is fair.’

Click here to read the full article, ‘We are not in the 19th-century era of free trade, ministers,’ on The Times's website (behind paywall).