Brexit Britain will have a major trade deal with the United States, U.S. President Donald Trump told Boris Johnson on Sunday, adding that the new British prime minister was the right man to take his country out of the European Union.
Johnson, who faces a delicate task keeping European allies on side whilst not angering Trump at a G7 summit in France, said trade talks with the United States would be tough but there were huge opportunities for British businesses in the U.S. market.
Asked what his advice was for Brexit before going into a bilateral meeting with Johnson on the summit sidelines, Trump said: "He needs no advice he is the right man for the job."
Prime Minister Boris Johnson used a pre-G7 summit phone call to U.S. President Donald Trump to demand he lower trade barriers and open up parts of the U.S. economy to British firms, citing a wide range of markets from cars to cauliflowers.
The two spoke on Friday ahead of the meeting of world leaders in the French resort of Biarritz, where they are expected to talk up the prospect of a bilateral trade deal once Britain leaves the European Union.
"There is a massive opportunity for Britain but we must understand that it is not all going to be plain sailing," he said during his flight to France, relaying details of the call to travelling reporters.
"There remain very considerable barriers in the U.S. to British businesses which are not widely understood."
Johnson listed what he said were restrictions or tariffs on shower base units, wallpaper, fabric, cars, railway carriages, pork pies, cauliflowers, micro-brewery beer, insurance, public procurement contracts, bell peppers, wine and rulers. ■
French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted that several European countries have offered their help to combat French wildfires, listing Germany, Greece, Poland, Romania and Austria.