chris southworth is the secretary general of the international chamber of commerce who represent businessess the globe. in terms of where we are at, today we find out if we get to the extension and hopefully the no—deal scenario is off the table. we do not know that for sure but that is the home. listening to what the eod are saying, the message is simple, it is costing the economy an enormous amount of money, the uncertainty. we are in an environment where world trade is down. i was talking to the chamber of commerce and the uk has slumped from fifth to number seven behind poland as an export economy. you talk to the german head of commerce, they are, some might argue, in recession already, and the pressure on them is huge and brexit is playing a part. everyone is extremely frustrated but this is not a time to add more uncertainty so the timing could not be worse. the institute of directors, saying a general election is preferred, a referendum is preferred to a no—deal. if we were to have a general election, what do you think the outcome might be? i know that is a hard question to answer.

chris southworth, uk head of the international chambers of commerce in brussels. more on this in the programme. a key argument in favour of brexit has been the opportunity for britain to build economic ties with other parts of the world, like the us. but a former us trade chief has told the bbc the special relationship won't mean more favourable terms when it comes to trade. the warning comes as the us prepares to hit europe with billions of dollars of import taxes from friday, with many uk businesses caught in the crossfire. our business editor, simonjack, explains. a bulk from the blue. a 15 year year feud between eu giant airbus and arch us rival boeing over government subsidies has seen the us allowed to impose $7.5 billion worth of tariffs on eu products. and the impact has landed right here, in speyside in scotland. from friday, single mould exports from scotland to the us worth £1 billion will be hit with a 2596 worth £1 billion will be hit with a 25% tariff. single malts from the republic of ireland will not. so this has been matured in a sherry glass for.

with us now is chris southworth, secretary—general at the international chambers of commerce. als from the business world perspective, how attractive is this new deal? it looks like a carveout of northern ireland from the rest of uk with two sets of regulatory regimes, two different customs union rules, a board in the irish sea. i think for business, anything other than no—deal is always better, so that is worth noting, that it adds to the uncertainty. year cycles the northern ireland assembly would make a decision whether to carry on with the same regime. from foreign investors point view that continues the uncertainty which would otherwise go away and that is important to note. in terms of where we are now with less than a month to go before the scheduled exit date of britain from the eu, the 31st of october, what sense are you getting from your members of what businesses are doing, big and small, to prepare? and what are they preparing for? i think what we're seeing now is the direct impact of the last three and a half years. we have been talking about impacts for a long tim

with us now is chris southworth, secretary general, international chambers of commerce. see you again. the last time you and i talk to, you were in brussels, you were pretty bewildered then. your thoughts now? well, we are ina then. your thoughts now? well, we are in a mess. the current situation is completely unsustainable. businesses need certainty, it is impossible for them to plan, they don't know what they are planning for so whatever the solution is, whether it is an election or referendum, we need a result and we need clarity for the economy. what you think about what mps said yesterday? a majority said they were in favour of the deal but they said they needed more time. that is reasonable, isn't it? you know, we are talking about a deal that is going to affect generations to come, it is going to affect the economy generations to come and we have to get it right and if that means you need extra days, take the time, don't rush into something that is going to have huge consequences for everybody just because going to have huge consequences for everybodyjust because

chamber of commerce. and the head of international affairs there saying this about whether there would be an agreement thatled for the 15th, next week. saying this. i'm not here to suggest we are going to have a grand slam in the u.s.-china relationship this week, but we are going to make progress. i found that offensive, as if the chamber decided what's going to happen. and its impact. they tried to of course. their role in how suspicious are you of wall street, the corporatists, the business round table and the biggest lobbying outfit, the chamber of commerce. >> this an ongoing debate within the trump administration. they want to continue the unfettered economic engagement. i think that ultimately the president will prevail and he will say look, we need to do a deal that's real for the united states and has provisions that can be followed or we won't do a deal at all. >> it's stunning stuff, those thinking and talking and pushing a small deal for a president who is a big deal president. i can't imagine it. bill, great to have you with us. the book again, deceiving the sky inside communist china's drive.

internal catalysts for their views and values. as well as of course myron brilliant over at the chamber of commerce. by any name for china against the interests of the united states. >> on the other side we have lou dobbs and most of of the american people of both political parties. because everyone knows china is a bad actor, they always renege on their deals and we can't trust them. but i am worried about wall street, chambers of congress, the koch organization and all the rest ganging up on the president. lou: we should remember that would make it a fair fight. this president is committed and he made it clear's committed to the american working man and woman, the middle class of this country. those are the folks he sees as his base. as the essential americans. gordon, it's great to have you with us. it will be interesting to see. gordon chang. stay with us. we are coming right back with more. we'll show you how much more right after these words. imagine traveling hassle-free with your golf clubs. now you can, with shipsticks.com! no more lugging your clubs through the airport or risk having your