Britain and the EU laid down Monday their red lines for post-Brexit trade talks, offering contrasting visions for their future relationship that raise the prospect of clashes to come.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson envisioned his country as a global champion of free trade, emphatically rejecting EU insistence on full alignment with Brussels.
But he still pledged not to "undermine EU standards", after the UK finally went its own way on Friday after nearly half a century in the bloc and an 11-month transition period began.
Worries over trade negotiations sent the pound sinking more than 1.1 per cent against the dollar in London midday deals on Monday.
"I see no need to bind ourselves to an agreement with the EU," Johnson said in a speech at the Old Royal Naval College, which chronicles Britain's past as a maritime superpower.
"We will restore full sovereign controls over our borders, immigration, competition, subsidy rules, procurement (and) data protection."
"We are not leaving the EU to undermine European standards. We will not engage in any kind of dumping, whether commercial, social or environmental."
"That means a mechanism to uphold the high standards we have on social, environmental, climate, tax and state aid matters today and in their future developments."