Rejoin the customs union, poach American academics and unashamedly champion democracy – here’s how Lewis Liu would respond to Trump’s trade war…

Fortunes are made in the rise and fall of empires, and it is in this particular moment – as we sadly see the great American empire shaken – that a once-in-a-century opportunity emerges for Britain.

Recently I have had countless conversations across the entire political spectrum in the US regarding Trump’s tariff regime. The reactions range from complete despair and disbelief to nationalistic exuberance, celebrating America’s reclaiming of control from perceived freeloaders. The reality, however, is more nuanced. The US has indeed ceded too much knowledge on high-value manufacturing to China and even Germany. Europe, for its part, has overly relied on the US security umbrella. Meanwhile, as China produces 3.5m STEM graduates annually, American universities have become entangled in destructive cultural conflicts. Addressing these issues doesn’t require discarding the last 80 years of America’s meticulously built exorbitant global privilege as the world’s reserve currency and rule-setter. But alas, here we are. So, what should Britain do about it to emerge once again as a pre-eminent liberal democratic power?

Reclaim globalisation

Globalisation is either dying or evolving into something unrecognisable. During Brexit, I was a staunch Remainer. But one strand of the pro-Brexit argument did resonate: the liberal vision of a “Singapore-on-Thames” – a global Britain, free from Brussels red tape. That vision may still be within reach. In this post-tariff world, Britain should throw open its doors to trade, reassert London as the financial capital of the world,........

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