I'll only sign US tariffs deal if it suits UK, says prime minister

Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to only sign a trade deal with the US that is in the UK's "national interest," as he warned about the impact of President Trump's tariffs.

The prime minister said the import taxes announced by the US president last week - which have prompted economic turbulence across the world - would pose a "huge challenge for our future".

The UK is hoping to sign an agreement to limit the impact on the UK, which has been hit with a 10% "baseline" import duty, with a 25% tariff on British cars.

The UK is considering changes to taxes on big tech firms as part of a deal.

But speaking during a visit to a Jaguar Land Rover factory in Solihull, Sir Keir sought to reassure the public there would not be a trade deal at any price.

"I will only strike a deal if it's in the national interest," he said.

"That's my priority - strength abroad, security and renewal at home," he added.

The PM was speaking as a trio of US stock markets opened 4.4% to 5% down amid concern about a global recession.

Earlier, the government announced it would relax targets for electric and hybrid cars and provide £2.3bn to boost electric car take-up and improve charging infrastructure as a "down payment" on Britain's industrial future.

Sir Keir said the visit to the car factory was a "statement of intent" of the government's plans to support the industry, adding: "these are challenging times, but we have chosen to come here because we are going to back you to the hilt".

He told factory workers the government would "have your back" amid a "rising tide of insecurity", pledging further announcements in the "coming days and weeks" to "use industrial policy to shelter British business from the storm".

He also announced a joint investment of £600m with the Wellcome Trust to improve access to healthcare data to help researchers conduct medical research.

The government says it wants to overturn US tariffs as part of a wider "economic deal" with the Trump administration.

But the UK has not ruled out retaliating, with officials drawing up a 400-page longlist of US products that could be hit with British import duties, from crude oil to firearms and bourbon whiskey.

The National Farmers' Union (NFU) is urging the government not to "roll over to an aggressive US administration" by lowering UK food standards as part of any deal.

NFU president Tom Bradshaw said: "With the UK farming sector already under huge strain, with confidence at an all-time low and investment dropping day by day, it cannot deal with another trade deal which sells out domestic food and farming."

Negotiations also continue on a deal on technology, with Trump's team understood to be pushing to lower the UK's digital services tax, introduced in 2020, which affects global tech giants like Amazon and Meta.

Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey has urged the PM to "show the White House we have alternatives and end this trade war through strength not timidity".

Meanwhile, the Conservative shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith posted on X to accuse Labour of having its industrial strategy "still stuck on the grid".

He also said the government had been "undermining competitiveness with higher taxes and new employment red tape".