Liam Fox has reignited a feud with Philip Hammond by saying a trade deal with America should not be “sneered” at but “embraced” as he prepares to begin talks in Washington tomorrow.

In a swipe at the chancellor, who said the global trade deals promised by Theresa May post-Brexit would make a limited difference to the economy, the international trade secretary said Britain should “take advantage of the vast opportunities ahead of us, rather than talking down our attractiveness to the rest of the world”.

In an article for the Sunday Times website, Fox, who will attend the first meeting of the UK-US trade working group tomorrow, writes: “Having the world’s largest economy publicly show commitment to increasing trade is not something we should sneer…