The Telegraph

Australia calls on UK to join forces after Brexit against 'protectionist' Donald Trump

Queen Elizabeth II talks with the Honorable George Brandis, the newly appointed Australian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom
Queen Elizabeth II talks with the Honorable George Brandis, the newly appointed Australian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom Credit: John Stillwell

Britain and Australia must join forces after Brexit to battle a rising tide of protectionism in America and "rigid state capitalism" in China, Canberra's new High Commissioner to the UK has said.

George Brandis, a former Australian attorney-general turned diplomat, said both countries aimed to sign a free trade deal "quite soon after Brexit" which will " announce the arrival of the UK as a modern major global trading nation in its own right."

The deal would sent a stark message to President Donald Trump, the US president, and Xi Jinping, the Chinese leader, that only global free trade provides countries with "security and prosperity," he said.

It would also mark the end of a period in British...

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