Will the US Presidential Election Impact the UK?

The USA might become increasingly important following the UK’s upcoming departure from the transition period that it entered after leaving the European Union, on the 31st of December. Currently, the UK is part of the single market, which treats all EU countries as one territory without borders that might obstruct the movement of goods or labour. With EU-UK negotiations in an inauspicious state, a ‘No-Deal’ Brexit is fast approaching. In such a scenario, the Confederation of British Industry predicts that 90% of goods exported to the EU would be subject to tariffs. In spite of this, the USA is in a position to reduce tensions upon the UK if a UK-USA trade deal negotiated.

The United Kingdom and the United States have long enjoyed a 'special relationship'. However, this could be challenged by bygone quarrels between the Prime Minister and the President-Elect; Boris Johnson has disparaged the former President Obama, alleging that he removed a bust of Churchill from the Oval Office because of his “part-Kenyan” heritage. Johnson has also enjoyed a friendship with the controversial President Trump, with whom Biden seems diametrically opposed. How will this impact the United Kingdom’s relations with the United States of America?

Boris Johnson is not the only politician to conflict with the former Vice President. Whilst a senator from Delaware, Biden opposed the US federal government’s ability to uphold a desegregation school busing scheme in the 1970s. This did not escape Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris’s scrutiny during the second round of the first Democratic primary debates on June 27th 2019; Harris was bused herself, benefiting from the scheme. She also criticised his friendships with southern segregationists, although she asserted that she did not “believe [Biden] a racist”. Their ability to recover from their fallout suggests that Johnson and Biden could also become good friends despite their differences.

In fact, they share many objectives; Joe Biden, having pledged to re-join the Paris Agreement and strengthen the global fight against climate change, has been invited to the next United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow by the Prime Minister. The pair are also focussed upon their countries’ recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic and share many foreign policy goals. Both have advocated for the Iran Nuclear Deal and support NATO.

Despite this, Joe Biden has always been a vocal opponent of Brexit – Johnson’s foremost policy. Following the referendum in 2016, Biden lamented that he “preferred a different outcome”. More recently, Biden has clarified his concerns regarding the UK Internal Market Bill that aims to prevent new trade barriers between the countries within the UK. The Bill could violate the terms of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, which ended The Troubles. Biden, who is proud of his Irish ancestry, believes that the UK should be cautious to protect Northern Irish peace. Demonstrating his understanding of British politics, Biden has previously tweeted that “We can’t allow the Good Friday Agreement that brought peace to Northern Ireland to become a casualty of Brexit”.

The incumbent will not be the first Prime Minister to have worked with Joe Biden, with the President-Elect having met both David Cameron and Margaret Thatcher. Regardless of whether they clash or cooperate, their relationship will command our politics.