'Thousands of jobs have been saved', says Business Secretary after UK-US trade deal announcement
by Shannon Cook · LBCExclusive
By Shannon Cook
Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds praised the UK-US trade deal for 'saving thousands of jobs'.
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Mr Reynolds made the remarks on LBC's Tonight with Andrew Marr, following the announcement of the UK-US trade deal.
Donald Trump and Sir Keir Starmer said today was a “historic” day as they formally announced a UK-US trade deal.
Donald Trump said it was a “great honour” to have the UK be the first trade deal signed with the United States, hailing a “full and comprehensive” deal.
The main aspect of the deal is that it removes the blanket 10% tariffs the Trump administration had imposed on imports from the UK - which is what Starmer would have hoped for.
It is the first deal Trump has struck with another country since coming to power and imposing his aggressive tariff policy.
Mr Reynolds told Andrew "the relationship the Prime Minister has struck [with Trump] in the UK national interest should be acknowledged and respected."
He continued: "because of action the government has taken, thousands of people are still in work and wouldn't have been without this action."
Mr Reynolds praised the "changes" that have strengthened the future of key sectors in the UK including automotive and steel industries.
He hailed "the very positive day for the UK".
Under the trade deal, US farmers will be granted new access to the UK.
Regarding food standards, Mr Reynolds said there was "no appetite amongst the UK population to change those."
"The Labour manifesto had a very clear commitment that we wouldn't be seeking to change [food standards] in any of our trade negotiations that we are seeking to make."
Meanwhile, the Business Secretary cautioned there is "more to do when it comes to trade".
However, Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch slammed the deal, saying that the UK had "been shafted".
Mr Reynolds advised Conservative central office to "take Kemi's phone off her and make her read things before she Tweets."
He added: "She [Badenoch] said earlier in the week they don't want trade with the US, she's saying today they don't like the EU, they don't like China. I mean, who do they want to do trade and business with?"
Read more: Starmer says UK-US trade deal will save jobs in car and steel industries
LBC callers react to Trump's UK trade deal
While the final details are still being 'written up' according to the US president, here is everything that has been announced so far.
Steel and aluminium industry
The UK may avoid the worst of steel tariffs, which soared to 25% at the start of Trump's trade war in February.
The agreement completely removes these tariffs to 0%.
This will offer a reprieve to Britain's steel industry, which only weeks ago was on the verge of collapse.
The US sells around 200,000 tonnes of British steel a year, worth over £400m.
Britain’s aluminium sector has also warned the tariffs pose an existential threat, with 10% of its exports sold to the US for a value of £225m.
British carmakers
The threat of 25pc tariffs to struggling British car manufacturers has been at the top of negotiators’ minds given the industry has warned the measure could have 'devastating' effects.
Trump had set the tariff for cars coming into the US at 27.5%, while a 10% baseline tariff on most goods remains in place.
But under the deal, American tariffs on British cars have now fallen to 10% for the first 100,000 vehicles exported to the US.
This would help soften the blow and would likely be welcomed by companies including Land Rover and Jaguar who reap huge US revenue.
Sir Keir Starmer said the US and UK were "hammering out further details to reduce barriers to trade" on other areas impacted by tariffs.
Around 25,000 jobs in the car industry were at risk from the 25% tariffs, hitting Britain’s industrial heartlands the hardest, according to the Institute for Public Policy.
Food and agriculture
One key element of the trade agreement involves concessions on food and agriculture imports.
From the details that have been announced, it is clear both the US and UK's agriculture sectors will gain new access to one another's markets.
UK beef farmers will be allowed to sell to US market for the first time, joining group of select countries such as Australia which currently have a similar arrangement.
British farmers have been given a tariff-free quota for 13,000 metric tonnes.
In return, US farmers will be granted new access to the UK, but Sir Keir insisted the Government has stuck to its "red lines" on farming standards.
It comes amid concerns over US chlorinated chicken, which has been banned in the EU and the UK for decades.
British ministers have previously ruled out accepting such controversial products, which also include hormone-fed beef.
Finally, a tariff on ethanol coming into the UK from the US, which is used to produce beer, will be removed.
US Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said the “major” deal is “an agreement in concept,” adding that more details still need to be fleshed out.
She added that this will be "very, very good" for American farmers and "for our ranchers that have long suffered as we begin to realign.”
Pharmaceuticals
Although British pharmaceuticals are not subject to tariffs from the US, Donald Trump has mulled over the idea of imposing trade levies on global imports from the industry.
The UK imported £8 billion of chemicals last year, about 12% of all chemical imports.
About half of that was made up of medicines and pharmaceuticals, like vitamins, antibiotics and vaccines.
The UK will now have "preferential treatment whatever happens in the future" when it comes to pharmaceuticals, Sir Keir has said, suggesting that the UK sector could be safeguarded against future tariffs.
This will likely be received well by British pharmaceuticals giants GSK and AstraZeneca.
Politics
Sir Keir Starmer appears to have proven wrong his political opponents who called for him to take a harder stance with the US president.
"I know people along the way were urging me to walk away, to descend in a different kind of relationship," he said.
"We didn't. We did the hard yards. We stayed in the room. I'm really pleased to say to the workforce here and through them to the country, how important I think this deal is," he added following the deal.
Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey was among those who called for a more muscular approach with the US president.