EU could demand freedom of movement after Brexit in return for going easy on bankers

But John Springford, deputy director of the Centre for European Reform, said the EU would treat Britain as harshly as Switzerland, which was forced to back down after a referendum demanded an end to free movement. The Swiss-EU agreement does not cover services, he added. “Most countries do not want to lose young, skilled people to the UK, as it erodes their tax base. And unless the UK signed up to free movement pretty much as it is now, the deal will be a much more limited Free Trade Agreement,” he told The Telegraph.