Former Prime Minister Foresees Failure in May’s Quest for Brexit Trade Solution

Former U.K. Prime Minister John Major said Theresa May’s quest for a post-Brexit alternative to the European Union’s Customs Union that provides for frictionless trade is one that’s doomed to fail.

Major -- who led the country from 1990 to 1997 -- said the customs union is “crucial to trade” in a speech Thursday at the Irish Embassy in London. Alluding to two options being shuffled by the incumbent’s divided cabinet, he said that there’s “no sensible alternative” to the customs union if the goal is to avoid a physical border between Ireland and Northern Ireland and facilitate trade with the EU after Brexit.