Shortly after triggering Article 50 of the Treaty of Lisbon – the formal mechanism for a country to leave the EU – British Prime Minister Theresa May called for a snap general election to be held in June. Political analysts say it’s a gamble. However, her goal is to increase the Conservative Party’s majority in Parliament as she strives to negotiate a good deal for Britain.

Local election results and polls indicate that this is a likely outcome which would definitely give May a stronger mandate in executing negotiation terms in her favor. However, the UK vote comes in the wake of pro-EU Emmanuel Macron’s presidential win in France, one in which he won with 65% of the vote. In fact, one of his first public statements at president was a stern warning for the UK to expect “tough” Brexit negotiations. Plus, the EU’s chief negotiator wants to determine the UK’s withdrawal terms first before negotiating any future trade deals, a move May disagrees with. Regardless of how the deal is cut, the ramifications will redefine the political and economic relationships between the EU and Britain, as well as the US which forms the bedrock of Western alliance.

What is the future of the European Union, and how will the upcoming UK elections influence it? How will this impact the transatlantic US-UK relationship? Colin Brown, chairman of the British-American Business Council and Christophe Crombez, senior research scholar at Stanford’s The Europe Center and professor at KU Leuven in Belgium, will discuss prospects for Brexit, the European Union and international trade negotiations.

SPEAKERS

Colin Brown
Chairman, British-American Business Council

Christophe Crombez
Senior Research Scholar at Stanford’s The Europe Center and Professor at KU Leuven in Belgium

MODERATOR:

Kausik Rajgopal
Senior Partner, McKinsey & Company