THE impact of Brexit has been minor on Oxford so far, according to the city council's finance chief.

An academic study predicted a hard Brexit - in which the UK leaves the single market and customs union when it exits the EU in 2019 - could reduce the city's economic output by at least two per cent a decade afterwards.

But Nigel Kennedy, the city council's head of financial services, said the start of any perceived economic shock has yet to hit Oxford's finances.

The pound has consistently fallen against the Euro following the EU referendum in June 2016 and the council's property values dipped initially but have since recovered, he said.

He said: "The impact is...not as much as people thought initially but other than property, which I can point to which was initially affected, there is not a lot to say about the Oxford economy but time will tell."

A report by the London School of Economics' Centre for Economic Performance had suggested Brexit would leave all British cities adversely affected.

While the housing market has slowed slightly across the UK, prices in Oxford remain among the highest in the country, and the report insists the market in the city remains 'buoyant'.

It said: “UK house prices fell for the third consecutive month in May 2017, the first time since the financial crisis, and despite small increases in June and July the annualised growth figure still dropped from 3.1 per cent to 2.9 per cent.

“It is fair to say however that even with the recent market fluctuations, the average cost of dwellings in Oxford continues to be buoyant.”

The council’s £90m in investments have remained stable, while interest rates have remained low. About £50m of the investments is stored in banks, with another £10m in investment funds.

It has about £3.7m stored in the charitable CCLA property fund and another £7m in the Lothbury Property Trust.

The impact of the Brexit vote had a ‘considerable effect’ on the funds’ values following the referendum but both have since strongly recovered, Mr Kennedy said.

A soft Brexit - in which the UK would remain in the single market - would leave Oxford City Council with a reduced output of one per cent by 2019, it predicted.

The UK economy was the worst performer in the EU at the start of this year. It grew by 0.2 per cent in the first three months of 2017 then by 0.3 per cent in the second quarter, far behind other European rivals. The Eurozone grew by 0.6 per cent in the first quarter.

Mr Kennedy’s report, presented to councillors on the authority’s finance panel, stated: “While the fall in the pound has helped exporters, it has made many imported goods more expensive and foreign holidays for British tourists.”