Donald Trump’s trade adviser says UK will go to front of queue for a deal if he is elected
‘Why shouldn’t we be working with like-minded people before we do a deal with anybody else?’
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Your support makes all the difference.Britain would go to the front of the queue for a trade agreement if Donald Trump is elected, the Republican presidential candidate’s trade adviser has said.
Dan DiMicco said America would “absolutely” come to an agreement with the UK before the EU, and Brexit happened for the “right reasons”.
A strong theme of Mr Trump’s candidacy has been the opposition to existing trade agreements or proposals, such as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).
He believes they have negatively impacted American workers and industry.
But the issue of coming to new agreements with other nations has so far received little attention.
However, Mr DiMicco told the BBC: “[The UK] are our friends, they have always supported us, and we’ve worked together, and they are leaving the EU, in our estimation, for the right reasons.
“They have lost control of their economy, the job creation engine, so why shouldn’t we be working with like-minded people before we do a deal with anybody else?”
The comments are a stark contrast to Barack Obama’s remarks that Britain would go to the “back of the queue” in trade negotiations during the lead up to the 23 June referendum.
Mr Trump has advocated a radical overhaul of international economic activity and America’s place in it.
He has threatened to place large tariffs on goods from China and Mexico, countries he blames for taking jobs from Americans. It is also part of his Seven Point Plan to Rebuild the American Economy to classify China – the world’s fastest growing major economy – as a currency manipulator.
America is being taken advantage of by foreign powers, in Mr Trump’s world view, partly because of “stupid” trade negotiators – who he would replace if elected.
However, many economists have criticised Mr Trump’s policies as protectionist.
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