Germany's Gabriel - badly handled Brexit would send Europe 'down the drain'

German Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel attends a news conference in Berlin, Germany, July 13, 2016. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke

BERLIN (Reuters) - German Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel said on Sunday that if Britain's exit from the European Union was badly handled and other member countries followed its lead, Europe would go "down the drain".

"Brexit is bad but it won't hurt us as much economically as some fear - it's more of a psychological problem and it's a huge problem politically," Gabriel, the deputy to Chancellor Angela Merkel in Germany's governing coalition, told a news conference.