By now, avid watchers can agree that Prime Minister May’s resignation will further complicate the already-complex Brexit landscape. Her tenure in office had been looking increasingly challenged for some time. The immediate trigger for her resignation was her final attempt to get her Brexit deal done, which included the offer of the possibility of a further referendum. This proved more than her party could accept, and the party would have forced her out of office had she not agreed to resign. 

With respect to bilateral trade negotiations, nothing will happen in the UK-US talks until a new prime minister is confirmed and the decision for the UK to Leave or Remain is sorted. Further, with last week’s European Parliament elections, powers are still being consolidated in the EU and new leaderships in institutions are yet in place, and as such, EU-US talks may only progress on more technical items, such as regulatory recognition, but not with any of the more difficult, and perhaps politically fraught, issues. For more insights, here are our publication on “Where Does the Past Week Leave the UK?” and our brief assessment of the European Parliament elections.