Trump or Biden: Who would be better for the UK?
Trump or Biden: Who would be better for the UK?
Sarah Elliott, chair of Republicans Overseas UK, says TRUMP
When I turn the radio tomorrow morning, I hope that the BBC will announce a victory for President Donald J. Trump — and not just for America, but for the sake of the UK too.
President Trump is the best for the UK out of either candidate. First, being half British himself and with business interests in the UK, Trump has a natural affinity for the country that Joe Biden does not. His administration has also made a free trade agreement with Britain a priority.
Biden, on the other hand, has made it clear that he would “have preferred a different outcome” to Brexit, and recently weighed in saying that if the UK exercised its powers in the Internal Market Bill — which is necessary for a true Brexit — there would be no free trade agreement between the two countries.
As the UK government pursues its plan for a global Britain, a second Trump White House would be a warm ally ready to build a stronger Anglo-American alliance to lead the free world and face its adversaries in the twenty-first century. Biden, in contrast, would seek to establish closer ties and a free trade agreement with the larger EU first.
Depending on who wins tonight, January 2021 could be colder than expected for the UK.
Andrew Dixon, British businessman and founder of ARC InterCapital and Fairer Share, says BIDEN
No business is an island. For better or worse, it matters who has political power, what policies are prioritised and what tone is being set in government.
And it’s not just Westminster. When it comes to the global battle against the Covid-19 pandemic or tackling the environmental challenges that threaten our planet, President Donald Trump’s decisions reverberate across the globe as effortlessly as his tweets.
Over the last four years, time and time again, Trump has undermined global cooperation — in everything from pulling out of the Paris Climate Agreement and the Global Compact for Migration, to his sustained efforts to weaken the WTO and Nato. Trump’s populist “America First” approach to international relations has undermined the prospects for global trade — and directly impacted British businesses.
After the pandemic has been defeated, huge global challenges will remain — from the demographic (such as ageing western populations and rising regional and intergenerational inequality) to the technological (like the rise of artificial intelligence, automation, under-employment, the power of Big Tech and the appropriate antitrust response).
Where possible, Britain needs global policy coordination if we are to meet these various challenges.
If Joe Biden makes it into the White House, America would once more be the purveyors of multilateralism. Like him, UK business owners are largely open-minded, outward-looking, and believers in global cooperation. They will welcome a President who shares these same values.
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Main image credit: Getty