JD Vance Indicates 'Good Chance' Of US-UK Trade Deal — But Allies Say There's A Catch

Amid rising global trade turmoil, U.S. Vice-President JD Vance has voiced his positive outlook on a potential trade agreement with the U.K.

What Happened: Vance, during an interview with the UnHerd website, mentioned that there is a “good chance” of finalizing a trade pact with the U.K. “We’re working very hard on a trade deal with the Starmer government….I think there’s a good chance that, yes, we’ll come to a great agreement that’s in the best interest of both countries,” JD Vance told UnHerd.

The U.S. Vice President is also optimistic about stronger relations with Europe. “We just want it to be an alliance where Europeans are a little more independent, and our security and trade relationships are gonna reflect that,” Vance stated.

Vance proposed that a U.S.-U.K. trade agreement would be simpler to secure than with other European countries due to a “much more reciprocal relationship”. He pointed to Germany as an example of a country that exports extensively to the U.S. but is “pretty tough” on a lot of American exports.

However, an ally of the Vice President told The Independent that Mr. Vance believes that free speech is under threat in Britain – and that he will insist the Keir Starmer government repeal laws against hateful comments, including those targeting LGBT+ groups or other minorities, as a condition for any agreement.

“No free speech, no deal. It is as simple as that,” the source told the publication.

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Why It Matters: This statement comes in the wake of the global stock market’s instability following President Donald Trump‘s declaration of comprehensive tariffs on almost all nations on April 2. The revised U.S. trade policy imposes a 10% “baseline” tariff on all imports from long-standing trade allies such as the U.K. and France.

The ongoing trade war in the U.S. has placed tech giants like Apple Inc. AAPL, Meta Platforms Inc. META, and Alphabet Inc.’s Google GOOG GOOGL at the center of negotiations. In an attempt to appease President Trump’s tariffs, the U.K. government has offered significant tax relief to these U.S. tech giants. U.K. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer proposed reducing the digital services tax (DST) for major U.S. tech firms in exchange for lower tariffs.

U.K. Business and Trade Minister Sarah Jones expressed her appreciation for Vance’s remarks and confirmed to BBC that discussions with the U.S. were underway, but did not provide a timeline for their completion. However, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey voiced his concerns and stressed the need for any U.S. trade agreement to be “properly examined” by ministers, reported the BBC.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.