Whichever side of the Brexit debate one stands, there are three aims that achieve uncommon consensus: first, that we should maintain and improve the competitiveness of British industry; second, that jobs and prosperity need to be spread more equitably across the country; and, third, that our existing trade with the EU should remain as frictionless as possible.

The introduction of freeports in the UK would take out these three birds with one stone.

At its simplest, a freeport is an area that is physically within a country but legally outside it for customs purposes. Goods that enter a freeport do not incur import duty. Instead, import duty is only paid if and when goods pass from the freeport into the domestic economy.

This offers notable