America’s top trade negotiator has said a deal with the UK is unlikely before the US presidential election in November.
Ambassador Robert Lighthizer’s comments come as the two countries embark on a second round of negotiations.
Among the issues complicating the talks are disagreements over US agriculture exports and UK taxes on tech companies.
“There are very, very fundamental issues that we have to come to grips with,” Mr Lighthizer said.
“I don’t want anyone to think this is going to be a rollover.”
Mr Lighthizer told Congress that President Trump’s administration is looking for a comprehensive deal – not a more limited agreement of the kind it has settled for in other instances – and said he expected to push for access to the UK market for American farmers.
He described many of the rules that limit US food exports – such as those regarding chlorinated chicken – as “thinly veiled protectionism”.
“The United States has the best agriculture in the world. It has the safest, highest standards and I think we shouldn’t confuse science with consumer preference,” he said.
On issues such as agriculture “this administration is not going to compromise”, he said.
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The two countries, which started a second round of talks on Monday, have yet to agree on any part of a deal, Mr Lighthizer said.
He said he hoped to make progress on some issues this week, but other matters – some of which depend on what comes out of UK talks with the European Union – will take longer to negotiate.
“There hasn’t been an enormous amount that’s happened yet,” he said.
Any accord is likely to ensure continuation of the Good Friday Agreement, a priority of many members of Congress, he said.
“At least at this stage I don’t see a great deal of pushback,” he said. “This is something that has to be worked out between the UK and Europe in the first instance, before it is worked out with us.”
Mr Lighthizer also repeated the administration’s threat to respond to unilateral taxes on tech companies with tariffs, like the ones the UK introduced this spring.
Digital tax war?
This month, his office launched an investigation into the digital services taxes in 10 jurisdictions, including the UK. The move was seen as a first step toward retaliation.
Representative Lloyd Doggett, a Democrat from Texas, said he feared the US was going to start a wide-ranging trade war over the issue, despite legitimate concerns about whether tech firms are paying their fair share of taxes.
“I’m not a loophole guy but I don’t want a tax system that unfairly treats American companies,” Mr Lighthizer said.
The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development has been overseeing multilateral talks aimed at reaching an international consensus for how to handle online activity.
While the US has said it wants to reach an international deal, Mr Lighthizer said the administration did not accept the current proposal, which has otherwise received widespread support.
“The reality is they all came together and agreed that they were going to screw America,” he said.
BBC