The Chancellor is prepared to make huge concessions to the United States in order to get a trade deal over the line.
Rachel Reeves says UK seeking ‘best deal possible’ with US
Rachel Reeves is reportedly prepared to make major concessions to Donald Trump in order to secure a free trade deal, despite saying she’d be willing to walk away from negotiations if offered a bad deal. This morning it’s claimed the government is now bracing to slash tariffs on US cars and agricultural products including beef and chicken.
Food imports have frequently been a major sticking point of previous negotiations, given the British public’s opposition to US use of chlorine in their chicken production process, and hormone beef. Rachel Reeves is currently in the US for talks with her American counterpart Scott Bessent. Yesterday she said she wants to see trade barriers slashed as part of any deal, after Donald Trump’s trade tariffs caused economic turmoil.
Donald Trump wants more car exports to the UK (Image: Getty)
Presently, the UK charges import tariffs of 10% on US cars, and 12% on agricultural products.
Ms Reeves told the BBC yesterday: “I want to see tariff and non-tariff barriers reduced between the UK and the US.”
“It’s why, for example, we are having a summit between the UK and the EU next month to try and make it easier for British businesses to export to our nearest neighbours and trading partners in Europe.
“It’s why we are in negotiations with the Indian government on a trade and investment partnership between our countries.
“I believe in free trade, but I also believe it needs to be fair trade, and that’s where the US do have an important point around some of the global imbalances that have built up over decades that we do need to address.”
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Britain could be on course for cheaper Cadillacs (Image: Getty)
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The UK Government has ruled out giving in to US demands to export chlorinated chicken, hormone-treated beef and US-built trucks.
However a core offer to President Trump is to reduce the UK’s import taxes to as low as 2.5%, which was the previous level charged by the US for UK imports before the recent hike.
This week Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey warned that a US trade deal will not completely insulate Britain to the global economic chaos of Trump’s tariffs.
Speaking at the IMF conference in Washington DC, Mr Bailey said: “Fragmenting the world economy will be bad for growth.”
“The UK’s a very open economy and therefore it’s not just the relationship between the US and the UK, it’s the relationship between the US, the UK and the rest of the world that matters here.”
