Why Donald Trump's second presidency means UK needs customs union with EU

For the 40 years before Brexit, we experienced a level of stability and prosperity which has eluded our most recent governments

Fasten your seat belts, it could be a bumpy four years. When Donald Trump is sworn in at the Capitol today much of the world will hold its breath, waiting to discover what this famously unpredictable and at times outrageously offensive leader might have in mind.

His previous term, of course, provides some clues, while his presidential campaign was nothing if not controversial. And his new official picture owes more to the angry image presented during his recent court case than to the happy smiley one hinted at in 2017. “No more Mr Nice guy” appears to be the message.

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But the return to office of this political disrupter coincides with a period when the world stands at a crossroads. Human rights and democracy itself are under threat across the globe.

For four years, when stability and progress are going to be both critical and difficult to attain, the free world will be led by a man who is making provocative pronouncements on trade tariffs and whose intentions towards Ukraine, Russia, Nato and the Middle East all go against the conventional view here.

Donald Trump has threatened to impose sweeping tariffs on imports to the US (Picture: Chip Somodevilla)Donald Trump has threatened to impose sweeping tariffs on imports to the US (Picture: Chip Somodevilla)
Donald Trump has threatened to impose sweeping tariffs on imports to the US (Picture: Chip Somodevilla) | Getty Images

Annexing Canada

Then, of course, there are the statements on Canadian annexation, Greenland and the Panama Canal which challenge credibility. But as the democratically elected leader of our traditionally greatest ally, his return to power places us in a bit of a quandary.

It’s a dilemma heightened by the offensive attempts to interfere in British politics by his ally and adviser Elon Musk. His statements are in themselves a breach of the long-held conventions about what we do and do not say about the domestic affairs of our allies.

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They are also ill-informed both about the issue on which he pronounced and the massive contribution made to tackling abuse of women and girls by Labour minister Jess Phillips.

Perhaps we should heed the warning of outgoing President Joe Biden, who fears that his country is descending into an oligarchy and expect four years of the world’s most powerful country being run by and for the whims of the world richest and most powerful men?

Or perhaps it is the businessman in him who is throwing out outrageous claims as a negotiating ploy to persuade us that otherwise untenable suggestions he comes up with might actually be a compromise?

Rebuild relations with EU

Whatever his intention, we must put our own economic interests first. By all means, our government must work to ensure that we somehow avoid those tariffs on vital food and drink exports to the US.

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But there is no harm in having an alternative to hand: Europe. For 40 years, our closest neighbours were our biggest trading partners and with them we were able to find a stability and prosperity which has eluded our most recent governments.

It is time we started to rebuild those relationships. Not by leaping back into the EU but by re-establishing those links, a UK-EU customs union similar to the one which served our businesses so well.

We have to acknowledge that circumstances have changed and with it we need to plot a new course, or perhaps return to an old one.

Christine Jardine is Scottish Liberal Democrat MP for Edinburgh West

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