UK breaks from EU stance, opts against swift tariff retaliation on US

By Ailbhe Rea and Lucy White 

The UK reaffirmed its commitment to US trade talks as British exports were swept up in President Donald Trump’s global steel and aluminum tariffs, breaking with Europe in its decision to retaliate immediately.  

Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds called the US decision to impose 25 per cent levies on foreign metal products without exemptions on Wednesday morning “disappointing.”  

Exchequer secretary to the Treasury James Murray told Times Radio: “We’re not going to retaliate immediately in that way.”

However, he added that Britain would “reserve our right to retaliate” in due course. 

The UK government previously said it was reluctant to impose retaliatory tariffs, with officials holding out hope that trade talks announced by Trump and Prime Minister Keir Starmer last month in Washington would spare the country from the initial salvo.   

“We are focused on a pragmatic approach and are rapidly negotiating a wider economic agreement with the US to eliminate additional tariffs and to benefit UK businesses and our economy,” Reynolds said in a statement, Wednesday morning. 

The British response set up a split with the continent, as the European Commission launched “swift and proportionate countermeasures.” While the differing approach underscores the benefits of the UK’s formal exit from the European Union since the last Trump-led trade war, it complicates Starmer’s efforts to rebuild economic and security ties with the bloc. 

Some 5 per cent of British steel exports and at least 6 per cent of its aluminum exports by volume go to the US, according to government estimates.  

Reynolds held a call with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Sunday, in which the tariffs were discussed. Starmer also urged Trump not to target British manufacturers in a call with the president on Monday. 

Starmer’s visit to the White House last month appeared to put the UK on a good footing, as the two leaders agreed to negotiate a “new economic deal” with advanced technology “at its core.”