BFI argued against including UK screen industries in US trade deal
The British Film Institute lobbied the UK government to exclude its film and television industries from a trade deal with the Trump administration. A May 2025 policy document warned that inclusion would cause "fundamental harm" to the sector.
The lobbying effort
The British Film Institute lobbied the UK's Foreign Office to exclude the nation's film and television sectors from a potential trade agreement with the U.S. government. In a policy document sent in May 2025, the BFI requested that its screen industries not be included in any deal signed with the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump.
The submission to government ministers warns that incorporating the creative sector into such a broad agreement would cause "fundamental harm" to the domestic industry. This action underscores the long-held anxieties within many national film bodies about open-market trade deals with Hollywood, which possesses a scale and global distribution power that few can match.
The trade deal context
While the document's full contents were not disclosed, the BFI's intervention points to concerns over the potential dismantling of UK-specific support mechanisms. Cultural sectors often worry that U.S. negotiators could classify domestic subsidies, tax incentives, and content quotas as protectionist barriers to be eliminated under a trade agreement.
By directly petitioning the Foreign Office, the body responsible for diplomatic agreements, the BFI aimed to secure a carve-out for the screen industries before negotiations advanced. The plea to protect the sector from what the BFI perceived as a significant threat highlights the cultural stakes involved in international economic policy, a frequent point of contention in trade talks involving the United States.
