‘Unclear whether US trade deal is possible’
US ambassador gives PM Brexit plan muted reply
THE AMERICAN ambassador has cast doubt on whether Britain and the United States can strike a comprehensive free trade deal after Brexit. Woody Johnson told The Yorkshire Post it was still “unclear exactly what is on the table” despite Theresa May publishing her Brexit plan in a white paper this month.
America’s top diplomat in the UK also gave a muted response to the Prime Minister’s decision to take personal charge of withdrawal negotiations with Brussels and suggested she should prioritise striking free trade deals around the world over close ties with the EU.
Brexiteers see the prospect of a UK-US trade deal as one of the top prizes on offer for leaving the EU.
But Brexit critics warn that cutting close ties with the EU would badly damage the UK economy, given that 43 per cent of the country’s trade is with the continent.
US President Donald Trump said as he visited the UK earlier this month that Mrs May’s plan for a “common rulebook” with the EU on goods would “probably kill” a transatlantic trade deal.
But a day later, Mr Trump rowed back during a joint press conference with Mrs May, insisting “whatever you do is okay by me”, adding “just make sure we can trade together, that’s all that matters”, and also stressing that after speaking with the PM he thought a deal would “absolutely be possible”.
However, pressed during a visit to Leeds on whether a comprehensive UK-US trade deal was still on offer given the PM’s plan, Mr Johnson said: “It’s very hard, I’ve been over here since last August and it’s unclear to me exactly what is on the table.
“We looked at the white paper and it’s 100 pages, so we’ll see exactly how this all evolves. The Prime Minister is now taking over the negotiation, so, yeah.”
Asked if Mrs May taking over negotiations was a good sign, Mr Johnson said: “For a bilateral trade deal? It depends what outcome you’re looking for.”
Mr Johnson said the ideal outcome for the US would be a trade deal with Britain, and suggested it could be more valuable to the UK than maintaining close ties with the EU.
The ambassador added: “Remember the level of (UK) trade with the EU as I understand it has gone down in the last decade at least, or more, versus the rest of the world, so that’s continuing to go down,” he said.
“So I would think these bilateral trade agreements or multilateral trade agreements would be increasingly more important rather than less important.”
The US is going through the white paper in detail and would be lobbying the Government over its contents, Mr Johnson said.
He added: “We’ve got close to a trillion and a half dollars of direct investment on both sides, £250bn-plus in trade, so we definitely have a seat at the table on this.”
PRIME MINISTER Theresa May will today tell farmers at the Royal Welsh Show that Brexit will mean a farming sector “fit for the future”.
Mrs May will set out the Government’s plans for a post-Brexit farming policy at the event.
The EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) subsidy system based on land farmed will be replaced with a system of public money for public goods, she will tell the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society and farming unions.
Mrs May will say she is committed to growing the food and drink sector and protecting the farmed environment for future generations.
She will say: “Leaving the EU presents us with a unique opportunity to transform our food, farming and environmental policies so we can have a healthy and prosperous agricultural industry that is fit for the future, and helps us to leave the environment in a better place than we found it.
“Scrapping the Common Agricultural Policy, and introducing a simpler system which provides funds in return for public goods, like improving water quality, reducing emissions and planting wild flower meadows to boost biodiversity, is fundamental to our new approach.
“I want to make the most of the freedoms provided by Brexit to design a new scheme that is less bureaucratic, and does away with the overly prescriptive information farmers currently have to provide to apply for grants.
“I commend our hard working farmers up and down the country, and here in Wales, who deserve better than the fundamentally flawed CAP system. That is why I want to hear from them today about what they need so we deliver a farming policy which supports the whole industry.”
Earlier this year, farming leaders urged that British farmers and growers should remain the “number one supplier of choice” to UK consumers after Brexit.
The National Farmers’ Union wants to see a new farming policy after the UK leaves the European Union that allows consumers to enjoy more sustainable, quality and affordable British food, whatever their income.
This should be led by new rules for British procurement, the union’s president Minette Batters said, meaning schools, hospitals, hotels and restaurants should all source British assured ingredients wherever possible.
The farming group, which represents 55,000 farmers, has outlined its vision for what the future should look like when the UK leaves the EU-wide Common Agricultural Policy after a series of meetings with its members.