Richard Spurr 1am - 4am
UK-US trade deal 'probably more likely' with Trump as President, says expert
3 November 2020, 16:31 | Updated: 3 November 2020, 19:05
UK-US trade deal "probably is slightly more likely" with Trump as President, says expert
The UK securing a post-Brexit trade deal with the US "probably is slightly more likely" if Trump wins the US election, a political scientist has told LBC.
Jason Reiffler, Professor of Political Science at the University of Exeter, made the comment as Donald Trump and Joe Biden have made their final pitches to the American public before the polls close.
Professor Reiffler told LBC's Shelagh Fogarty: "In terms of being able to get a post-Brexit trade deal with the United States, that probably is slightly more likely under a Trump administration.
Trump ends campaigning with Michigan rally
"I think a Biden administration would probably privilege negotiating something with the EU ahead of the UK, and Trump would probably be the other way around."
Speaking of Ireland and its position in relation to Brexit, he added: : "I think that sometimes the folks in Great Britain underestimate American support, particularly in key political circles, for Ireland and Northern Ireland.
American businesses board up their shopfronts ahead of the Election
"And those are not trivial issues to key segments of the American political class."
The professor did predict that a Biden election victory would mean that "he core special relationship and security relationship between the United States and Europe is fully in tact and restored".