How bad would it be for the City if the UK lost its preferential access to EU financial services markets after Brexit? Not that big a deal, say some lawyers. By using existing rights of access for third countries and applying some ingenuity most UK-based firms could get by pretty well.

These commentators rightly claim that there has been a tendency to exaggerate the damage that would be caused by the loss of passporting, the system that allows firms authorised in one EU member state to do business across the bloc.