Larry Summers, who was a Treasury Secretary under Bill Clinton, claimed London was not in a position where it could secure favourable terms with Washington. Mr Summers was one of eight former Treasury secretaries who called for the UK to vote to remain prior to the election. According to the Daily Mirror, he said: “If Britain thinks American financial regulators, who have difficulty coming together on anything, are going to come together to give greater permissions and less regulation to UK firms, I would call that belief close to delusional.
“Britain has much less to give than Europe as a whole did, therefore less reason for the US to make concessions.
“You make more concessions dealing with a wealthy man than you do dealing with a poor man.”
He added: “Second, Britain has no leverage. Britain is desperate. It needs an agreement very soon.”
Speaking to Marketplace after Britain voted to leave, Mr Summers said: “My hope is that this will be a wake up call for elites everywhere, on the need to develop a responsible nationalism. But the best way forward is not denial, is not railing against the folly of the electorate, it’s seeking to design an approach, approaches to economic policy that hear the anger that’s being expressed in this vote.”
READ MORE: BBC’s Brussels reporter explains why EU will not cave to Brexit threat
US President Donald Trump has sought to strike a post-Brexit trade deal and 45 Republican senators have signed a letter saying they would back one.
This however does not constitute all GOP representatives in the upper house, as the party holds 53 Senators and a majority is needed to pass any deal, with the body also having 45 Democrats and two independents.
A vote from the Vice-President, currently Mike Pence, would be needed in the event of tie.
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab is set to meet US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, his equivalent across the Atlantic.
International Trade Secretary Liz Truss is also visiting the US to meet with trade negotiator Robert Lighthzier, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross and a variety of senior officials.
Ms Truss said: “Negotiating and signing an exciting new free trade agreement with the US is one of my top priorities.
“Having already laid the groundwork, we are fast-tracking this deal so that businesses are able to take advantage of the golden opportunity to increase trade with the US as soon as possible.
“The US is our biggest trading partner and we have more than $1 trillion (£822billion) invested in each other’s economies. We want to get formal talks moving quickly.”
