London: Julia Gillard has poured cold water on the Australian and British governments' hopes of signing a trade deal within months or even weeks of Brexit and told British television it would be no economic bonanza when in force.

Australia and the UK want a free-trade agreement between the two countries to be one of the first it signs after Brexit. Both sides have said it could happen within months or weeks after Britain leaves the single market, and Australia is hoping to negotiate better access for Australians wanting to live and work in the UK.

Julia Gillard speaks to BBC Television's Politics Live program. Credit:BBC

But the former Labor prime minister, who revealed she would have voted to Remain, told the BBC's Politics Live program that she felt a responsibility to remind Britain that trade agreements "take a bit of time".

Asked about how long a deal could take, Gillard said: "It depends". But she further cautioned that while free trade between Britain and Australia was a "good thing," "I don't want people getting a false sense about the quantum involved".