We all know that Trump’s tariffs landed worldwide last week, wiping almost $5trillion off the global stock market. For us, it’s meant adding a 10% duty on UK imports into the US.
And it was here, in the West Midlands, that the Prime Minister landed this week to tell the country how we will weather this storm. He chose to come here because he knows how exceptional our regional businesses are; he knows that for the UK to survive these troubled waters that the Government must support our industries which have already shown how robust they are and how flexible they can be.
Our own Jaguar Land Rover is pausing shipments to the US for a month while it considers the impact of the new 25% tariff imposed by the US on imported cars.
All our businesses are on high alert. We know that we have the best minds, the quickest wits, the business acumen and industrial reputation. Now, we need a government that has the back of British business.
We know what that looks like in the West Midlands; we know what it is to have a thriving industry at the heart of our region; we know how that success ripples out into our community and homes. Britain is only as strong as its workers and is only as confident as its business community.
Giving carmakers more flexibility over how they meet a target to stop sales of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030 is a very positive step by the Government – doing, as well as saying, the right thing.
Exceptional times call for exceptional plans; the Prime Minister is right – this could be chance to reshape Britain. And from conversations I have had on the House of Commons Business and Trade Committee’s recent trip to Japan, I see five steps, we – and other sensible nations – should take in response to President Trump’s moves.
One, we must keep talking; we must keep the Americans in the conversation. It’s possible that the sheer scale of the market meltdown could trigger a new willingness to negotiate exemptions.
Two, get ready to retaliate. We cannot take retaliation completely off the table but, in reality, only the EU and China are large enough to inflict such pain on the U.S. that it might cause the President to reconsider.
Three, prepare to support our industries. And we’ve seen the Prime Minister doing just that this week at JLR. Here in the UK, firms are already under extra pressure from the rise in NICs, the National Minimum Wage, and the Employment Rights Bill. So, the Government must accelerate publication of its industrial policy.
Four, rethink our economic rules. Everyone will need to revisit their economic frameworks in light of the Trump tariffs. The shock isn’t quite on the scale of the Global Financial Crisis nor COVID, but it’s still significant. We cannot sail on as if nothing has happened.
Finally—free traders must step up and build a coalition of the willing to defend and extend the free and open global economy.
We are not puppets of American policy. We are not without hope. And, as we see when we look around our own region, we are not without talent! Let’s use our business skills, our industrial heritage, our local talent pool to help reshape our country.
