May in US for trade deal dance with Trump

British prime minister visits Washington to pave way for post-Brexit accord

LONDON // Trade will dominate talks between the leaders of the United States and Britain this weekend, with both hoping commitments to a future deal will redefine their “special relationship”.

For British prime minister Theresa May – who today will become the first foreign leader to meet US president Donald Trump – even a simple promise to deepen trade ties could strengthen her hand in divorce talks with the European Union. Mr Trump might use the meeting to go some way to winning concessions from Britain and bolster his vision of the US exporting its way to prosperity.

But for both leaders, the road to any firm trade deal is littered with pitfalls.

Differences over genetically modified food, on meat production and public sector procurement, and public fears in Britain that US companies might want to exploit its national health service could all hamper movement on a deal.

Plus, while Mr Trump has said a deal can be done “very quickly”, both he and Mrs May say they will put their respective countries’ interests first.

“So as we rediscover our confidence together – as you renew your nation just as we renew ours – we have the opportunity, indeed the responsibility, to renew the special relationship for this new age,” Mrs May said at a stopover in Philadelphia to meet senior Republicans.

The prime minister will underline areas where she says cooperation is vital, in defence and security – both bilaterally and through Nato, and on Syria.

But it is trade where she hopes to “establish the basis for a strong working relationship”.

A British government source signalled that Mrs May’s team was taking a cautious approach to find out what a “quick” trade deal looked like.

Mr Trump has played up traditionally close ties with Britain, distancing himself from his predecessor Barack Obama, who said the country would be at “the back of the queue” for a trade deal with the US if it left the EU. Westminster has made a strong play to court Mr Trump after an initial diplomatic glitch when, soon after his election victory, he angered UK officials by meeting British anti-EU campaigner Nigel Farage, a critic of Mrs May, and saying he would be a good choice for ambassador to Washington.

British foreign minister Boris Johnson met Mr Trump’s advisers this month and told parliament he had found a “huge fund of goodwill” for Britain.

Goodwill may run out fast, not only on trade, but over other areas where Mr Trump and Mrs May have disagreements, such as climate change, Nato, and the Iranian nuclear deal.

Mr Trump formally withdrew the US from the Trans- Pacific Partnership trade deal this week and is also working to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Mrs May says she will take Britain out of the EU’s single market, instead focusing on winning a free trade deal with the bloc and agreements with other countries.

By making clear she will cut ties with the EU unless she wins a good deal, some experts say she has handed other countries the upper hand in any talks.

After a US-EU trade deal, the Trans- Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, ground to a halt last year, Washington might press for Britain to drop its resistance to US genetically modified foods and to smooth over regulatory differences for product safety, food and pharmaceuticals.

British opposition MPs have challenged Mrs May on whether she will gut health and safety standards to allow imports of US products such as beef that contains growth hormones.