‘We don’t muck around’ – Australia’s PM offers May relief with trade pledge

Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull said his country wants to seal a free trade agreement with the UK “as soon as possible” after Brexit on a visit to Downing Street.

In a friendly joint press conference that saw the two leaders exchange jibes about cricket, Mr Turnbull praised Theresa May’s Brexit vision as offering “big horizons and big opportunities”.

“There are no two nations in the world that trust each other more than the UK and Australia,” said Mr Turnbull, who attended Oxford University at the same time as Mrs May. Asked how quickly a trade deal with the UK could be done, he said: “As soon as possible. We move quickly. Australians are fleet of foot, we don’t muck around.”

Mrs May revealed that International Trade Secretary Liam Fox will visit Australia in the “coming months” as part of ongoing talks on an agreement. The two prime ministers visited the scene of last month’s London Bridge terror attack to thank emergency workers who went to the aid of victims, who included two Australian nationals. It came as one of May’s most senior minister suggested Britain could remain subject to European Court of Justice (ECJ) rulings during a Brexit transition period.

Damian Green said the UK would leave the jurisdiction of the European court, but admitted that “the rules that operate during that transition period will by definition not be the rules that we have afterwards”.

Amid growing concern at the impact of leaving the European nuclear agency Euratom, Mrs May also signalled that the UK will “maintain those relationships” to allow the continued exchange of medical isotopes and expertise.