PM hails historic day’ as UK-US trade deal agreed

Sir Keir Starmer has struck a historic trade agreement with the US that will slash Donald Trump’s tariffs, in what the president hailed as a “great deal for both countries”.

- KATE DEVLIN, DAVID MADDOX and MILLIE COOKE

The UK became the first country to reach such an agreement since Mr Trump’s swingeing “Liberation Day” tariffs threw the global economy into turmoil last month.

The prime minister welcomed a “fantastic, historic day” as he said the move would “boost British businesses and save thousands of British jobs” and deliver on his promises to protect carmakers and the UK’s steel industry.

The president extolled how “we got it done” and highlighted how the “special relationship and external bond” will soon be “stronger than ever before”.

The deal will see US tariffs on cars immediately slashed from 27.5 to 10 per cent, up to 100,000 vehicles – almost the total number exported last year. Levies on steel and aluminium will be reduced to zero, but a general 10 per cent tariff for other goods will remain.

In response, Britain will scrap its tariff on ethanol, used to produce beer, coming into the UK from the US. The Americans said the deal would also see its imports fast-tracked and “exponentially” increase the amount of US beef coming into the UK.

However, No 10 insisted there would be “no weakening of UK food standards on imports” amid fears over US hormone-fed beef and chlorinated chicken.

There had been speculation that the UK would reform the digital services tax as part of a deal. The tax is paid by US tech companies such as Meta and Google on money made from the UK, but No 10 said it would remain unchanged.