Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer has cautioned U.S. president-elect Donald Trump against imposing tariffs on U.K. goods.
During a committee session with MPs on Thursday, Starmer was questioned about his relationship with Trump, who has vowed to introduce steep duties on imports once in office.
While Starmer refrained from commenting on whether he had raised the issue with Trump or disclosed how the U.K. might respond, he made it clear that he was “alive to the danger” posed by such tariffs. Trump has promised to use executive powers to impose 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports on his first day in office, and to introduce new tariffs of up to 60% on Chinese imports.
Other trading partners, including the U.K. and the European Union, are watching these plans closely. The U.K. has some retaliatory measures it used during Trump’s first term. “It won’t come as any surprise to you that I am not a fan of tariffs, and therefore we have to make sure that we avoid tariffs,” Starmer said to the House of Commons liaison committee.
When asked if he could persuade Trump to abandon the tariff plan, Starmer declined to speculate on the president-elect’s actions but reiterated his opposition to trade barriers. “I am against tariffs. But I am not going to speculate as to what the incoming president might do,” he added.
Starmer also revealed that he spoke with Trump by phone the day before, discussing topics such as the war in Ukraine and the economy. The conversation followed a longer in-person meeting between the two in New York in October. Starmer expressed hope of “improving” the U.K.’s trade relationship with the U.S., particularly after talks for a post-Brexit free trade agreement were halted under the Biden administration.
