A Brexit strategy for a weakened UK leadership

Ngaire Woods examines how Britain’s departure from the EU needs to be less confrontational and more cordial. Negotiations should be about preserving a mutually beneficial relationship

As British prime minister Theresa May seeks to form a new government, following an election in which her Conservative Party lost its parliamentary majority, she knows that, within days, she will also need to get down to the nitty-gritty of negotiating Britain’s exit from the European Union.

Preparations for the Brexit negotiations have been underway for some time, but they have so far been impaired by three elementary negotiating mistakes, and now must deal with the fact that the British government’s mandate to act has been damaged severely.