Theresa May reiterated her intention to turn the UK into a “world leader” on trade post-Brexit, in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Speaking to both business leaders and politicians at the event in Switzerland, May took the opportunity to highlight the effect of globalisation on economic inequality. She said:
“At the same time as promoting openness, we must heed underlying feeling that there are some companies, many with a global reach, who are playing by a different set of rules to ordinary working people. ”
“It is important to show that in this globalised world, everyone is playing by the same rules.”
Her speech comes just days after she announced her intention to take the UK out of the single market and negotiate a completely new trading agreement. She enforced her message at Davos, saying that “Businesses large and small are the backbone of our economic enterprises, the engine of our prosperity. Britain is and always will be open for business.”
However May was criticised after her speech on Tuesday for wanting to “have her cake and eat it”, with European leaders and spectators unsure how likely it will be for Britain to leave the European Union, but negotiate an agreement that ensures it retains all the benefits of being part of the single market.
In a controversial move May told European leaders that she would rather take “no deal” over a “bad deal” for Britain, warning that Europe stands more to lose than the UK if Britain is forced to walk away from a trade agreement entirely.