Sir Keir Starmer responds to Donald Trump's 'out of line' warning as trade war ‘underway’

Mr Trump had suggested he was poised to expand his tariff regime to the European Union, but added that he thought a deal could be done with Britain.

The looming prospect of a trade war with the US had threatened to overshadow the Prime Minister’s meeting with EU chiefs on Monday. But Downing Street have now downplayed any suggestion of escalation.

Asked about it during a joint-press conference on Monday with Mark Rutte, the secretary-general of Nato, Sir Keir stressed the importance of the special relationship with the US.

He said: “On the question firstly of tariffs, obviously it’s early days and I think what’s really important is open and strong trading relations. That’s been the basis of my discussions with President Trump and I know that intense US-EU discussions are planned.”

Earlier Downing Street had insisted the UK's trading relationship with the US was “fair and balanced”, and praised the conversations that had taken place with the new Trump administration so far.

A Downing Street spokesperson said: “The Prime Minister has had a really constructive early set of conversations with President Trump, and looks forward to working with him to deepen our trade, investment, security and defence relationship.”

Asked by the BBC early on Monday if he would target the UK with tariffs, Mr Trump had said: “UK is out of line, but I’m sure that one … I think that one can be worked out.”

The US president also said discussions with Sir Keir had “been very nice”, adding: “We’ve had a couple of meetings. We’ve had numerous phone calls. We’re getting along very well.”

UK ministers have previously suggested the UK could avoid US tariffs because America does not have a trade deficit with Britain. Downing Street also insisted the US is an “indispensable ally” to the UK.

“We’ve got a fair and balanced trading relationship, which benefits both sides of the Atlantic,” No 10 said.

“It’s worth around £300 billion and we are each other’s single largest investors, with £1.2 trillion invested in each other’s economies.”

The US president said tariffs would “definitely” be placed on goods from the EU, saying America’s trade deficit with the bloc was “an atrocity” that meant “they take almost nothing and we take everything from them”.

It comes with MPs set to discuss the UK-US bilateral relationship in a Westminster Hall debate led by Scottish Tory MP John Cooper.

Speaking exclusively to The Scotsman in advance of Tuesday’s debate, Mr Cooper insisted there was no closer ally than the US, and suggested Mr Trump’s fondness for Scotland could help relations.

The Dumfries and Galloway MP said: “Under the Biden administration, the ‘special relationship’ faded somewhat. But Trump is an Anglophile – and, of course, his mother was a Scot from Lewis.

“The Irish love the soft power that St Patrick’s Day gives them, with their Taoiseach in the Oval Office with a bowl of shamrock for the president. We have a much stronger ‘in’ at the White House.

“That special relationship has a material benefit for people’s everyday lives here in the UK. Labour needs to treat the relationship with the absolute seriousness it deserves.”

Mr Cooper said he would be using the debate to challenge Labour on the party’s long-term plans.

He said: “A trade war is well underway and Britain has a choice to look west to America – where I think we have a good chance to strike a meaningful deal – or east to Europe.

“Labour’s instincts are so often to run for the skirts of Nanny Europe. But they are an unwelcoming, protectionist bloc, apparently more keen on securing extra fishing rights in British waters, and for a youth mobility scheme that would benefit their youngsters far more than ours.

“All this is against a backdrop of the hot breath of the Chinese dragon on our necks. The Chancellor’s Operation Kowtow there brought slim rewards, and many look askance at Chinese plans for an embassy in London astride sensitive data cables.

“Britain faces a three-way crossroads and the Prime Minister seems to want to ride three horses in three different directions. We'll be probing Labour’s intentions in this debate.”