FINANCE chiefs’ views of the prospects for the UK economy might not be quite as grim as they were last year, in the immediate wake of the Brexit vote, but they are bleak.

They are also nothing other than realistic.

It is no surprise at all that domestic political factors and Brexit-related issues are the top two barriers to UK growth identified by finance chiefs, in the latest survey from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland.

Prime Minister Theresa May, whose June 8 General Election gamble backfired spectacularly on the Conservatives, might want to take note of these survey findings. So too might her predecessor, David Cameron, who decided to call the European Union membership referendum in the first place, many might say unnecessarily.

As the spectre of Brexit looms, it is also interesting to observe skills shortages are now being viewed by finance chiefs as the third-biggest impediment to expansion.

It says much of the scale of the risks ahead that 16 per cent of finance chiefs believe the UK economy is set to decline over the next 12 months. And 52 per cent see “flat or negligible growth”. Only three per cent expect expansion of 2.5 per cent-plus.

This is a realistic assessment of the UK economy’s prospects in the wake of the Brexit vote.

It is good to see finance chiefs do not appear to be enamoured or swayed by the still-celebratory and ebullient tone from some of the Tories leading us towards Brexit.

After all, an awareness of the huge challenges ahead, and their nature, will be crucial to tackling them.