Keir Starmer is readying emergency measures to support British industry after Donald Trump sparked global chaos with his sweeping trade tariffs.
The Prime Minister will announce action this week to bolster UK businesses who have been stung by the US President’s 10 per cent tariff on goods imported into America.
Mr Trump has also slapped a 25 per cent levy on foreign car imports, which has prompted Jaguar Land Rover to announce it will ‘pause’ shipments to the US.
Sir Keir is expected to admit ‘globalisation is over’ after the US President sparked an international trade war, which has led to carnage on financial markets.
The FTSE 100 had its worst day of trading since the start of the Covid pandemic on Friday, with banks among some of the firms to suffer the sharpest losses.
The PM is set to use a speech tomorrow to unveil fresh measures to try and boost economic growth, as fears mount of a worldwide recession.
He will reportedly bring forward parts of Labour’s industrial strategy and also ease regulations on electric car manufacturers.
Meanwhile, Chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to step up efforts to achieve a trade deal with India while also securing a fresh agreement with Australia.
The UK has been hit by Mr Trump’s ‘baseline’ 10 per cent tariffs while others – such as the EU – have been stung by much higher trade levies.
A senior Labour minister this morning begrudgingly admitted that Britain dodging the higher tariff rate imposed on Brussels was a ‘Brexit dividend’.
Darren Jones, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, said the UK had been ‘treated differently to the EU’ as a result of Brexit.
Asked if the lower 10 per cent tariff imposed by the US was a ‘Brexit dividend’, the Labour MP – who was part of the Remain campaign in 2016 – told Sky News: ‘It is, there’s one.
‘I’ve struggled to find one in the past but there is one we’ve ended up with. It’s good, but what we’re not going to do is pick or trade off the US or the EU.’
Mr Jones said the Government would respond to Mr Trump’s action in a ‘calm-headed and considered way’, adding that ‘a trade war is in no one’s interests’.
But he rejected the US President’s claim that Sir Keir was ‘very happy’ with the level of tariffs he has imposed on Britain.
‘Keir has been clear that he’s unhappy about the tariffs,’ the Treasury minister said.
‘I suspect what’s being referred to there is the fact that the UK had the lowest tariff, and puts us in a much stronger position than other complex, large economies.’
Mr Jones said this was ‘a vindication of our engagement with the US in the run up to the President’s announcements.
‘But clearly, we don’t like tariffs; we’re not happy about that,’ he added.
He confirmed ‘there will be further announcements from the PM this week on support for British business’ in the wake of Mr Trump’s tariffs.
Mr Jones added: ‘He (Sir Keir) thinks globalisation has failed in the current context,Â
‘And that we need to go further and faster in supporting British industry and the British economy. He’ll be saying more about that this week.’
In a later interview this morning, Mr Jones reiterated the view that globalisation had ‘come to an end’.
Asked the if era of ‘cheap fast-fashion or cheap TVs’ was over, he told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme: ‘Yeah, it’s ended.
‘Globalisation, as we’ve known it for the last number of decades, has come to an end.
‘That’s why we need Britain to be strong and resilient, also build out our relationships with our allies and partners around the world.
‘But also why we have to invest in the domestic economy, both for UK businesses, but also our public services, so that we have workers and communities who are well-skilled and able to take advantages of jobs in the UK.’
Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, Sir Keir said that when it comes to tariffs, ‘the immediate priority is to keep calm and fight for the best deal’.
The PM said that in the coming days ‘we will turbocharge plans that will improve our domestic competitiveness’.
He added: ‘We stand ready to use industrial policy to help shelter British business from the storm.
‘This week, the Government will do everything necessary to protect Britain’s national interest.
‘Because when global economic sands are shifting, our laser focus on delivering for Britain will not. And these new times demand a new mentality.’
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said there is ‘a place for tariffs’ but that the ones imposed by the US will be ‘destructive for businesses’.
She told the BBC: ‘The retaliatory tariffs will make people in our country poorer.
‘There is a place for tariffs, we did use them, but right now what they will do is make life more expensive for British consumers.’
Mrs Badenoch spoke about the previous Conservative government negotiating a trade deal with Mr Trump’s first White House administration in 2020.
‘I would like the Government to pick up where we left off,’ Ms Badenoch said.
‘We had six rounds of negotiations where there were some decisions that were concluded, and they can pick that up and take it.
‘But the most important thing is removing tariffs. The tariffs are going to be destructive for our businesses.’
Sir Keir has been taking calls from foreign leaders through the weekend to discuss the tariff changes.
He shared his ‘concerns’ about the impact on global economics and security in a call with Emmanuel Macron, after separate conversations with the PMs of Italy and Australia on Friday.
Mr Trump has warned Americans that the tariffs ‘won’t be easy’, but urged them to ‘hang tough’.
In a post on his TruthSocial platform, the president said: ‘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.’
