Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.
Labour has insisted it has a plan to deal with Donald Trump’s tariffs, as the latest threat to British steel production prompts demands for Sir Keir Starmer to set out his strategy.
The US president on Monday announced a worldwide 25 per cent tariff on steel, triggering panic over the future of Britain’s fragile industry and raising fears that more trade fees could deepen problems for the UK economy, which is already teetering on the brink of a recession.
As well as hitting UK exports to the US, a global trade war could see an influx of cheaper imports that would put British suppliers out of business.
Mr Trump’s threat adds to the pressure on the prime minister to push for a deeper relationship with the EU; a report published over the weekend found that a so-called dynamic alignment – in which Britain would mirror EU regulations in order to allow frictionless trade without having to rejoin a customs union – would grow the economy by 2.2 per cent.
But there are concerns that ministers have refused to say whether a strategy is in place to deal with the threat of more US tariffs.
Calum Miller, the Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesperson, said: “In the face of Trump’s threats, ministers should be urgently working with international allies on a coordinated response. British jobs are on the line. Businesses and workers want to see the government stand up for them, not tiptoe round the issue.”
Meanwhile the leader of the party, Sir Ed Davey, called for a four-nation UK summit to allow the devolved leaders to deal with the impact on the steel industry.
But David Henig, director of the UK Trade Policy Project at the European Centre, said it could be counterproductive for the government to reveal its tactics for protecting the economy in what is turning into an international game of poker.
He said: “A broad public strategy to deal with the situation would be helpful, but the details probably need to remain secret. I’m sure the scenarios have been considered.” He added: “EU alignment is undoubtedly helpful both for Trump and EU relations.”
Mr Trump said he plans to impose 25 per cent tariffs on “any steel coming into the United States”, adding that aluminium will also be subject to additional duties.
Britain is awaiting details, but the steel industry has called for action to mitigate what could be a “devastating blow”.
The UK exported 166,433 tonnes of steel to the US in 2023, the last full year for which figures are available. The US is the industry’s second-largest export market after the EU, although the government said it had only accounted for 5 per cent of UK steel exports in 2023.
UK Steel director general Gareth Stace said: “It is deeply disappointing if President Trump sees the need to target UK steel, given our relatively small production volumes compared to major steel nations.
“The UK produces world-leading steel, supplying the US with high-quality products for defence, aerospace, stainless, and other critical sectors, materials that simply cannot be replicated elsewhere.”
Downing Street insisted that Britain and the US would continue to “work closely together on a range of economic issues, supporting jobs” on both sides of the Atlantic.
“I haven’t seen any detailed proposals following the reporting overnight, but we will obviously engage as appropriate,” the prime minister’s official spokesperson said. He added that he would not be drawn into saying whether the UK would retaliate if Mr Trump went ahead with the tariffs.
The UK steel industry was hit with tariffs in 2018 during Mr Trump’s first term in office, but those were eased in 2022.
In his second term in the White House, Mr Trump has so far imposed, but then delayed, duties on imports from Mexico and Canada, and has also imposed 10 per cent levies on goods imported from China.
Richard Kilpatrick, head of campaigns at the European Movement UK, called for Britain to move closer to the EU, suggesting that the tariffs are a wake-up call.
He said: “Trump’s tariffs are increasingly unpredictable. Even if the tariffs are not applied to the UK directly, the impact that they have on the international commodity market does have an impact on global prices.
“We need a stable international market. It is only a matter of time before a tariff is applied to the UK directly. A stronger relationship with our European neighbours is the only way to protect our economy from Trump.”
Trade experts have suggested that the UK government does have a strategy but, in a worldwide poker match of diplomacy, it does not want to reveal the details.
Marco Forgione, general director of the Chartered Institute of Export and International Trade, suggested that Sir Keir needs to play both sides and attempt to get better terms with both the US and the EU.
He said: “The EU discussions are attempting to address current friction. A trade agreement with the US would make a significant positive difference to the tariff problem. It would certainly deal with the potential impact of US tariffs and perceived trade rebalancing actions.
“The challenge [we] and other nations face is the speed and breadth of announcements, which come without much notice. Although being outside EU means the UK is not a top priority, we are exposed to action taken by US against the EU, in particular because of Northern Ireland and the fact that we could be caught in tariffs levied by both sides.”
Caroline Ramsay, partner and head of international trade at law firm TLT, warned, though, that the loss of an export market might just be the beginning of Britain’s problems in a Trump-inspired trade war.
She said: “Even if the UK avoids having equivalent tariffs imposed by the US, UK businesses may still feel the impact. The UK may become the recipient of ‘dumped’ excess goods flowing from markets subjected to US tariffs. This might give rise to opportunities for supply-chain cost savings for UK importers. However, we may also see increased competition, price suppression, and lower sales for UK producers.”
