US ambassador says Donald Trump ‘enthusiastic’ for trade deal despite Brexit plan criticism
3 min read
The US ambassador to the UK has moved to play down Donald Trump’s claim that Theresa May’s Brexit agreement could end hopes of a trade deal with the US.
Woody Johnson said the President is still looking towards an “ambitious trade deal” with the UK after it quits the European Union and that both countries remain “perfect partners".
In a major blow for the Prime Minister, President Trump told reporters earlier this week that the withdrawal agreement struck with Brussels represented a “great deal for the EU” rather than the UK.
“I think we have to take a look at seriously whether or not the UK is allowed to trade because you know right now, if you look at the deal they may not be able to trade with us,” he said.
“That wouldn’t be a good thing. I don’t think they meant that, I don’t think the Prime Minister meant that, and hopefully she’ll be able to do something about that.
“But right now as the deal stands they may not be able to trade with the US and I don’t think they want that at all, that would be a very big negative for the deal.”
Under the draft agreement, the UK will remain tied to EU trade rules until at least the end of 2020, while both sides try to reach a free trade deal – with the potential of another two year extension or the imposition of the “backstop” aimed at avoiding a hard Irish border.
Writing for The Times Red Box today, Mr Johnson said: “The president has always said that Brexit is for the British people to decide but as he made clear again this week, he hopes there will be room for an ambitious trade deal with the United States.
“The Prime Minister shares this goal and has pledged that the UK will be free to negotiate its own trade deals as soon as you leave the European Union.”
He added that both sides had met to "lay the groundwork" and that the president’s trade representative "has already formally notified Congress of our intention to start negotiating".
"If we seem enthusiastic, it’s because we are. Britain is the perfect trading partner for the United States. We are both countries that are at the top of our game when it comes to business, science and innovation...
“We are the perfect partners. We have already forged one of the most successful economic partnerships in global history."
When asked about Mr Trump’s comments on a trip to Wales yesterday, the PM told journalists: “As regards to the US, we have already been talking to them about the sort of agreement that we could have in the future.
“We have a working group set up and that is working very well, has met several times and is continuing to work with the US on this.”
'ON A PLATE'
Elsewhere, ardent Brexiter and ex-frontbencher Owen Paterson has criticised the PM for reportedly knocking back a free trade agreement offered by the US in July.
He told The Daily Telegraph that Mr Trump's aides informed him that the President offered a deal when he met her at Chequers in the summer but was told by Mrs May that the UK "wasn't ready".
He said: "When I visited the US in September I was told by people close to the administration that Trump had made an offer but Mrs May told him the UK wasn't ready. I was told by people who knew him well and had been appointed to senior positions by him..."
“The US does not believe it can do trade deals with countries who don't control their own tariffs and regulatory regime. Clearly there was a deal to be struck in the summer - it was handed on a plate and now that opportunity seems to have been squandered.”
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