Heard the guy on radio 4 laughing saying deal shouldn't take too long as they'd be negotiating with themselves. It would be funny if it wasn't so serious.

"...... careless talk costs lives." How easily the lessons of wartime are forgotten in peace time.

I agree its not funny. I find it a disgrace that a sovereign country like ours has not had any trade negotiators because instead we've had to rely on someone from the EU to negotiate on our behalf plus the other 27 countries on the World Trade Organisation. Plus, lets not forget how completely incompetent the trade negotiations are taking around 30+ years just to get into a serious phase of a deal being made.

Trump and his cronies regard the UK like a troublesome old maiden aunt who they patronize just to get their sticky fingers on her few remaining baubles before she pops her clogs. A sort of neighbourly mugging, then they will dump the memory and move on to greener fields. Trump is not the first Americsn leader to adopt this attitude and certainly won't be the last.

I don't think it's even as complicated as that. The US itself is desperate (hence Trump). It will do whatever it takes to ensure that it isn't pulled into the mire any further.

If that means driving wedges between allies they won't have a problem with that. Having a strong EU used to be in America's interests. That's no longer really the case.

There's no animosity to peak of, they just won't care who they crush along the way. The EU is in a similar position -- so good luck to any third party who wants deals to go their way in the current climate.

Trump is a business man, sentimentality does not come into the equation.
He wants to go down as the president who changed America and made it even greater and if that means screwing Britain and the 'special relationship' well so be it.

You can see from America, Dublin, Frankfurt, Paris and the reception Theresa May recently received from world leaders that many see Britain as a dead carcass to leap on and and feed off to get their piece of the pie.

You really do talk some absolute drivel. Here's a clue: you can only dump someone once. Here's another one: the foundations of the Anglo-American relationship have NOTHING to do with trade.

This is really become hysterical now.

Get a grip. We will always be a relevant country, to say otherwise is laughable.

We'll never be No.1 though and its time people face up to that.

Germany / US / China are all vying for the top spot. I would probably expect a trade war between US and China. Then we'll have to pick a side.

... which isn't going to end particularly well for us regardless of what side we take (and I think it's pretty obvious which way we'd go anyway if the choice is those two).

The Americans aren't going to take us under their wing just because we side with them against China. And the Chinese would just do us over. We're just not significant enough to matter very much, in or out of the EU.

When I think of the 'Special relationship' I think of Bush saying to Blair, jump, and Blair responding with, how high.

That is so true TBH.

I just don't think its doom and gloom from Brexit.

Trump is a president without any friends at the moment. The whole world despises him.

Given how Merkel was the only one with the balls to directly call him out, I cannot see him looking too favourably on the EU unlike how Obama was trying to do by pushing TPP.

We'd go China, since they practically own 50% of all our companies.

Which is why I think China might "encourage" EU to give us at least something from these negotiations. Unlike the plague of locusts that many seem to think will happen.

Do people honestly think EU is going to make us go hard without any form of a deal? It would be madness on both sides.

I doubt that very much. It'd be political suicide.

They own us though. Sadly.

"Political Suicide" will be covered up by. "Let's not go with Trump and side with racists" and the anti Trump propaganda will be in full swing by then.

My Mystic Meg predictions