Sir Keir Starmer vows to 'shelter' British firms from the 'storm' of Donald Trump's tariffs
5 April 2025, 22:27
Sir Keir Starmer has said he wants to “help shelter British business from the storm” of US tariffs.
Listen to this article
Loading audio...
In a piece for the Telegraph, the Prime Minister has pledged to "do everything necessary” to defend the national interest.
He says he will “continue to make the case for free and open trade,” saying “we stand ready to use industrial policy to help shelter British business from the storm.”
The comments come after Jaguar Land Rover "paused" shipments to the US over Donald Trump's tariffs.
Mr Trump's tariffs officially came into force on Saturday, with global stock markets plunging deeper into the red in response to the import taxes.
It came after a 25% levy on all foreign cars imported into America came into force on Thursday.
But the US president has insisted that the "economic revolution" will deliver "historic" results.
He claimed that there had already been more than five trillion dollars of investment.
However, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) said it was halting shipments as it worked to "address the new trading terms".
A JLR spokesperson said: "The USA is an important market for JLR's luxury brands.
"As we work to address the new trading terms with our business partners, we are taking some short-term actions including a shipment pause in April, as we develop our mid to longer-term plans."
Posting on Truth Social earlier on Saturday, Trump said: "China has been hit much harder than the USA, not even close. They, and many other nations, have treated us unsustainably badly.
"We have been the dumb and helpless 'whipping post', but not any longer. We are bringing back jobs and businesses like never before.
"Already, more than FIVE TRILLION DOLLARS OF INVESTMENT, and rising fast! THIS IS AN ECONOMIC REVOLUTION, AND WE WILL WIN.
"HANG TOUGH, it won’t be easy, but the end result will be historic. We will, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!"
Read more: Trump tariffs come into force as global stock markets plunge deeper into the red
UK Government mulls response to Trump’s tariffs as global markets slide
Meanwhile, Keir Starmer is expected to spend the weekend speaking to foreign leaders about the tariffs, following calls with the prime ministers of Australia and Italy on Friday. The leaders agreed that a trade war would be "extremely damaging".
Meanwhile, the FTSE 100 plummeted on Friday in its worst day of trading since the start of the pandemic, while markets on Wall Street also tumbled.
Australia's stock market dropped 191.90 points (2.44%) at close on Friday, setting a new 100-day low, while Italian markets closed 6.5% down.
Read more: Nintendo delays pre-orders for new Switch 2 gaming console amid Trump tariffs
The "baseline" 10% US tariff on goods imported from around the world came into effect shortly after 5am on Saturday UK time.
Many other countries will see their tariff rates increase above that next week - including the EU, which will be hit with a 20% rate.
A 25% tariff imposed on all foreign cars imported into the US came into effect on Thursday.
Suck it up or retaliate? Britain considers tariff response
A Treasury minister said that the Government is "negotiating intensively" and "at pace" to secure a deal with the US.
Meanwhile, the PM is thought to be pushing for Trump to visit Scotland this year, for a meeting with the King at Balmoral.
The president may also visit his Turnberry golf course, which is in Scotland too.
A visit could be as soon as June or in late August or early September, the Telegraph reported.
It would be in addition to the state visit offered during Starmer's trip to the White House, which is likely to take place next year at the earliest.
Trading across the world has been hammered in the aftermath of the President's announcement at the White House on Wednesday.
London's top stock market index shed 419.75 points, or 4.95%, to close at 8,054.98 on Friday, the biggest single-day decline since March 2020 when the index lost more than 600 points in one day. The Dow Jones fell 5.5% on Friday as China matched Trump's tariff rate.
Beijing said it would respond with its own 34% tariff on imports of all US products from April 10.
All but one stock on the FTSE 100 fell on Friday, with Rolls-Royce, banks and miners among those to suffer the sharpest losses.
It is expected that Sir Keir will take further calls with counterparts over the weekend.
Ministers have so far avoided criticism of Trump as they seek to secure a trade agreement with America, which they hope could secure some exemption from the tariffs.
The PM has said the Government will respond with "cool and calm heads".
But the Government has drawn up a list of products that could be hit in retaliation, and is consulting with businesses on how any counter measures could impact them.
Speaking to LBC's Henry Riley, US Political Commentator and Republican Delegate Angie Wong said: "The right approach [for Starmer] is don't react.
"President Trump, the art of the deal President, is notorious for doing this. That's what the world needs to understand.
"He loves throwing out these extreme measures only to see your reaction, how the opposite side reacts, then he knows how to negotiate with you."
Chancellor Rachel Reeves said on Friday that the Government is "determined to get the best deal we can" with Washington.
"Of course, we don't want to see tariffs on UK exports, and we're working hard as a government in discussion with our counterparts in the US to represent the British national interest and support British jobs and British industry," the Chancellor said.
The Lib Dems have said that the Government's "attempts to appease the White House" are not working, and called on ministers to coordinate a response with allies.
Calum Miller said in a statement: "We need to end this trade war as quickly as possible, but the Government's attempts to appease the White House and its offers to cut taxes on US tech billionaires simply aren't working.
"Instead, the best way to end this crisis is to stand shoulder to shoulder with our European and Commonwealth friends. We must coordinate our response and strengthen our trading relations with our reliable allies. That's how we can protect our economy from Trump's bullying."
In a post on TruthSocial, Trump said the United States needed to "hang tough" in the face of the trade changes.
"Big business is not worried about the tariffs, because they know they are here to stay, but they are focused on the BIG, BEAUTIFUL DEAL, which will SUPERCHARGE our economy," he said.
