Despite the fact that US President Joe Biden and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak unveiled the so-called "Atlantic Declaration" on cooperation during their recent talks, the two sides' free trade deal has yet to materialize, British media has reported. The talks came as part of Sunak’s two-day visit to the US which wrapped up on Thursday.
One UK newspaper went even further by reporting that the Atlantic Declaration announcement "signaled the end of any hope of [Britain’s] full trade deal with the US."
This was echoed by Labour, who accused the Conservatives of failing to roll out the full-fledged trade deal they pledged four years ago.
Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy underscored that "Labour has consistently called on the government to secure closer economic ties with the United States to work together on the critical issues of our time […] but this statement shows the Conservative government has failed to deliver the comprehensive trade deal they promised in the 2019 [Tory] manifesto" on Brexit.
He added that "While the Biden administration have enacted the Inflation Reduction Act to de-risk its economy from China and create jobs at home, the Conservatives have left Britain’s cupboards bare."
The remarks come after Biden failed to answer when asked at a joint press conference on why he wouldn't agree to free trade deal with the UK, instead listing an array of areas in which the two countries are collaborating.
The declaration includes a narrow trade pact covering the critical minerals needed for electric car batteries, closer defense industry cooperation, easing trade barriers, and a new data protection deal, among other things.
When asked if the free trade agreement would be up for discussion during the June 7-8 Biden-Sunak talks, the UK prime minister spokesman Max Blain said earlier this week that Britain is "not seeking to push a free trade agreement with the US currently."
Under the Trump administration, the US held five rounds of discussions to try to clinch a free trade deal with London, but to no avail. When entering office in January 2021, Biden actually put the free trade deal talks on ice and his administration has shown no sign of trying to resurrect them, describing such agreements as a "20th-century tool."