LONDON (Reuters) - Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said he hoped a spirit of goodwill would prevail between Britain and European Union countries to smooth over inevitable trade disruptions when a post-Brexit transition period ends on Jan. 1.Last week the BoE said many smaller British companies appeared unready for the reintroduction of customs checks in under seven weeks’ time, and estimated that border delays were likely to cost Britain 1% of GDP - around 5 billion pounds - in the first three months of next year. This disruption would be even greater if Britain and the EU failed to reach a trade deal, leading to new tariffs on goods. Bailey also told a panel discussion with U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde that he felt “very uncomfortable” at the huge amount of economic uncertainty created by COVID.