Donald Trump will prioritise US corporate interests and demand that the NHS pays higher prices for American pharmaceuticals in any post-Brexit trade deal, according to the former British ambassador to Washington, Kim Darroch. In his first interview since resigning in July, Darroch told the Guardian that Trump would seek to reward his voter base, including drug companies and farmers, by opening up UK markets.
Darroch, who served as ambassador until a leak of his diplomatic cables forced his departure, said the US would push for greater access for agricultural products and higher payments for US drugs. He noted that the independent National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) currently caps drug prices in the NHS, forcing US firms to sell more cheaply in the UK. Trump’s team would seek to remove that cap, Darroch warned.
The former envoy dismissed Labour claims that the NHS would be “up for sale”, but stressed that Trump’s “America First” approach would focus on pleasing his supporters. “He believes in rewarding people who vote for him – American farmers and big American corporations,” Darroch said.
Darroch also cast doubt on the UK government’s strategy of conducting parallel trade negotiations with the US and the EU, describing it as “a narrow and rocky path”. He questioned whether the UK had the resources for such talks, noting that Britain has not negotiated trade deals independently for 40 years. He added that it was “impossible” for a US-UK deal to pass Congress before the end of 2020, given the US presidential election campaign.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has acknowledged that trade talks would involve “hard conversations” and warned the UK not to use “food safety as a ruse” to protect domestic industries. The UK has yet to publish its negotiating objectives for the US talks, which Darroch attributed to a lack of bandwidth.
