U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer left Washington last week. Making the case for a U.S.-U.K. Trade agreement should have been at the top of his agenda, but any discussion of trade was unfortunately sidelined. Under the Biden-Harris administration, U.S.-U.K. trade negotiations have ceased, along with all other trade negotiations with our allies.
Whereas the Trump administration aggressively used tariffs and impediments of trade to get better access to markets, or to achieve other diplomatic or and security ends, this White House has not even asked for Trade Promotion Authority from Congress, a legal requirement for any presidential administration to start formal trade negotiations with any country. Indeed, the Biden administration has ruled out almost all free trade agreements and market access discussions, leaving America with high barriers to trade that aren’t benefiting us in any tangible way.
Between 2017 and 2021, the Trump administration successfully negotiated multiple bilateral trade agreements, and it was in the process of negotiating 12 more free trade agreements in 2021, including with Switzerland and Kenya, which were close to completion.
The most strategic of all these was U.S.-U.K. free trade negotiation. President Trump himself has stated that a trade deal could increase trade with the U.K. “three to four, five times.” And patriots on both sides of the pond are frustrated that a deal hasn’t happened already.
Recently, Rep. Jason Smith (R-Mo.), chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee — which has the sole jurisdiction over trade in Congress — stated to the Congressional Western Caucus that it is “maddening” that we do not have a free trade agreement with the United Kingdom. He gave the example that the U.S. cannot consume all the apples produced in the state of Washington, so we must export them. The U.S. is the largest exporter of food in the world and trade is vital for our economy.
Labour members of the British Parliament have also made clear their discontent. Earlier this year, when I hosted a UK delegation at the Heritage Foundation for trade talks, they expressed concerns over China’s unfair practices. One member of the delegation with a trade portfolio said that a potential Labour government would want a free trade agreement with the U.S. within 100 days of taking office.
The enthusiasm is laudatory, but the goal will not be achieved under the Biden-Harris administration. As a senator, Vice President Kamala Harris voted against USMCA, and that approach is reflected in this administration’s blanket protectionism.
It doesn’t have to be this way. The U.S. is the largest foreign direct investor in the U.K. A trade agreement is long overdue, especially since the UK can now take advantage of the benefits of leaving the European Union.
One obvious solution is for the U.K. to join USMCA, which was successfully negotiated by the Trump administration. Other countries are already moving to do the same. It is expected that Costa Rica could join USMCA under a new administration, and there would be far more benefit to the U.S. of extending membership to our closest ally, the U.K.
Ambassador Robert Lighthizer and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have both declared that USMCA was the “gold standard” in free trade agreements. With the USMCA up for review in 2026, the admission of the U.K. to this gold standard agreement should be on the agenda.
The other advantage is that, as an already-established free trade agreement, there would be little need for negotiation for admission to USMCA. The U.K. could simply apply to join USMCA as it applied to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership in the Pacific without protracted negotiations required for a new free trade agreement.
Considering long-established international protocol, Starmer was badly advised to visit the president only a few months before he leaves office. It would have been better to wait until after the election, because little can be achieved in meeting with a lame duck president.
Whatever the outcome of the election, however, there is a massive opportunity to start working for a USMCA expansion — one that neither country can afford to miss.
Andrew Hale is the Jay Van Andel Senior Policy Analyst in Trade Policy in Heritage’s Thomas A. Roe Institute for Economic Policy Studies.
