Sir Keir Starmer and Donald Trump have discussed “productive negotiations” towards a UK-US economic prosperity deal in a phone call, Downing Street said, as fears grow the UK may be landed with US tariffs.
The pair agreed that negotiations will “continue at pace” in the Sunday night call, which came after home secretary Yvette Cooper warned that “no option is off the table” in terms of a British response to any US tariffs.
Downing Street is trying to negotiate an exemption from tariffs on all imports into the US. Talks between the countries are said to be intense, with a decrease or removal of a British tax on US big tech firms among the bargaining chips.
Mr Trump earlier this week announced a 25 per cent import tax on all cars arriving in the US, a measure which will hit British luxury carmakers including Rolls-Royce and Aston Martin. A reciprocal set of tariffs is already set to come into effect on April 2, which may involve a general 20 per cent tax on UK products in response to the rate of VAT.
The President had opened by wishing King Charles “good health”, a Downing Street spokesperson said, after the royal was recently hospitalised due to the side effects from his cancer treatment.
They then discussed the “productive negotiations between their respective teams on a UK-US economic prosperity deal, agreeing that these will continue at pace this week”.
But the UK government has publicly criticised the Trump administration’s widespread tariffs on countries around the world.
Speaking on Sky News’ Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips programme, Ms Cooper said: “In the end, if you increase barriers to trade right across the world, that’s not good for the world economy, let alone any individual country as part of that.
“So that’s why our approach to this has been to try and seek new trade agreements across the world, including improving our trading relationship with the EU, as well as with the US.”
Discussions with the US over exemptions from the levy are “intense”, Ms Cooper said, adding: “We obviously can’t keep a running commentary on different discussions that are taking place, but we have to always make sure that we’re acting in the national interest.”
The phone call between Downing Street and Washington also addressed the Ukraine war.
“Discussing Ukraine, the Prime Minister updated the President on the productive discussions at the meeting of the Coalition of Willing in Paris this week. The leaders agreed on the need to keep up the collective pressure on Putin,” Downing Street said.
“They agreed to stay in touch in the coming days.”
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