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Sir Keir Starmer has held what Downing Road referred to as “productive” commerce negotiations with US President Donald Trump, as he seeks to avert punitive tariffs on British exports from April 2.
However Whitehall officers have cautioned that Britain might be hit by Trump’s threatened international tariffs on what the US president calls “liberation day” on Wednesday.
One official stated: “April 2 shouldn’t be seen as the tip of the method. We’ll stick with it speaking to get the absolute best deal for Britain.”
Starmer, who has had common telephone calls with Trump in current weeks, has stated that Britain can be “pragmatic and clear eyed” in its response if exports of UK-made vehicles and different items are hit by US tariffs.
Though Downing Road has made it clear that no choices are off the desk, Starmer has performed down the prospect of fast UK retaliation, arguing {that a} commerce battle wouldn’t be in Britain’s curiosity.
Quantity 10 confirmed a dialog had taken place between Trump and Starmer on Sunday and stated: “They mentioned the productive negotiations between their respective groups on a UK-US financial prosperity deal, agreeing that these will proceed at tempo this week.”
Lord Peter Mandelson, Britain’s ambassador to Washington, is searching for to engineer an financial deal that will see Britain given a carve-out from Trump’s threatened reciprocal international tariffs.
Britain has spoken to the Trump staff about scaling again or axing its digital companies tax, which is about to lift £800mn this yr and notably impacts huge US tech corporations.
However the UK automobile trade informed Sarah Jones, trade minister, on Friday that it didn’t need to see fast UK retaliation if Trump presses forward together with his risk of 25 per cent tariffs on foreign-made vehicles getting into the US.
“The trade doesn’t need a commerce battle, however it’s essential that we hold all choices on the desk,” Starmer stated final week.
Carmakers have as an alternative demanded that ministers develop a “holistic method” to supporting the UK auto trade, together with via decrease power prices, elevated coaching and higher regulation.
The unbiased Workplace for Funds Duty, the fiscal watchdog, has warned that Britain’s GDP can be 1 per cent decrease subsequent yr within the occasion of essentially the most “extreme” international commerce battle.
That might virtually get rid of UK chancellor Rachel Reeves’ £9.9bn of headroom in opposition to her fiscal guidelines, introduced final week within the Spring Assertion, and improve the chance that she must elevate taxes in an autumn Funds.
