Britain needs a foreign policy. Brexiters may fantasise about “global Britain”, but leaving the EU removes one of the twin pillars of its place in the world. The foundations of the second, transatlantic support, have been badly shaken by US president Donald Trump’s America First worldview.
To adapt the caustic observation of a postwar American statesman, Britain is losing a continent and casting around for a role.
Hardline Leavers who want a clean break with the EU hold up Canada as a model for future trade relations with the bloc. They are right to say Britain can learn from its Commonwealth partner and Nato ally. The mistake is to think the lesson is about trade. Britain needs a deeper economic partnership with the EU than that enjoyed by Ottawa. Where it can learn from Canada is in reframing the way it looks at the wider international landscape.
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