UK will reap rewards of TTIP: Brussels bureaucrat attempts to link UK to US-EU trade deal

A CONTROVERSIAL trade partnership between the European Union (EU) and the United States could benefit Britain, according to a Brussels official.

David O’Sullivan, the EU ambassador to the US, has extended the olive branch to the UK by saying Britain will reap the rewards of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).

But it could be seen as a way to speed up trade talks with America, after the US said Brexit could mean the whole agreement may have to be re-thought.

With the UK being the largest market for US exports to Europe, one US official said the EU without Britain is like the US without California. 

Negotiators said they still needed to overcome large differences for a transatlantic free trade deal to be sealed this year, and factor in Britain leaving the EU. 

Critics of TTIP say it will make Britain and Europe have to compete more fiercely with American companies. There are also concerns the NHS could be affected, with an essential part of TTIP being fair and open access to government contracts.

But TTIP could boost the American economy by some $100billion and the UK economy by as much as £10billion.

Yesterday, as Mr O’Sullivan and US Speaker Paul Ryan’s adviser Casey Higgins were discussing the importance of TTIP, Mr O’Sullivan said: “We’ve always seen TTIP as a potential open platform, UK could still benefit from it even not as a member of the European Union.”

The Irishman was speaking at the Republican Convention in Cleveland. 

The possibility of the benefits would affect Liam Fox’s newly created Department of International Trade. 

Negotiations for a US free trade deal with the 28-member bloc started in February 2014. 

Chief EU negotiator Ignacio Garcia Bercero and US counterpart Dan Mullaney told a news conference after a 14th round of talks that both sides were committed to sealing a deal before President Barack Obama leaves office at the turn of the year.

US Secretary of State John Kerry said the US government is committed to concluding TTIP talks this year and believes it is even more essential after Britons voted to leave the EU. 

He said: “It has the ability to act as a counter to whatever negatives may or may not ultimately attach themselves to whatever construct is negotiated between the UK and Europe."

Despite President Obama warning the UK would be “at the back of the queue” in the event of a Brexit vote, the US is already beginning to look at a trade deal with Britain. 

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and his US counterpart John Kerry discussed the options during a recent meeting in London. 

Mr Kerry said the US is beginning to “pencil in” the terms of a trade deal but stressed no negotiation can take place until Britain leaves the bloc.