Starmer to face grilling from senior MPs amid ongoing tariff turmoil

Sir Keir Starmer will be questioned by senior MPs on Tuesday amid turmoil in global markets caused by US tariffs, which Donald Trump has insisted he will not pause.

The Prime Minister is expected to hold a Cabinet meeting of his most senior ministers in Downing Street on Tuesday morning, before he heads to Parliament, where he will appear before the Liaison Committee of senior parliamentarians on the last day the Commons sits before it heads into the Easter recess.

The global impact of Mr Trump’s tariffs is likely to be on the agenda for the committee, where Sir Keir may also be questioned about the war in Ukraine, conflict in the Middle East, and the US president’s announcement that America will hold direct talks with Iran about its nuclear programme.

A he spoke to reporters in the Oval Office on Monday, Mr Trump indicated he was not open to the idea of pausing tariffs to allow for negotiations with other countries.

The UK is among the nations arguing its case for a carve out from the trade tax on goods going into the US.

The President has imposed a 10% tariff on US imports of British goods, along with the 25% tariff on cars and separate import taxes for steel and aluminium.

Mr Trump also suggested the tariffs could be both a negotiating tool to extract concessions out of other countries, as well as “permanent” levies aimed at raising cash for America’s coffers, amid contrasting views from members of his administration about their purpose.

Sir Keir warned the tariffs were “not a passing phase” as he visited Jaguar Land Rover’s West Midlands plant on Monday, but urged workers at the car maker to remain calm.

“This is a moment for cool heads, nobody wins from a trade war, you know that,” he said.

The luxury car maker has been hit by the US tariffs, with the Prime Minister insisting moves to ease the transition towards phasing out petrol and diesel cars was a “statement of intent” in backing Britain’s automotive industry.

But the threat of a global trade war deepened as Mr Trump said he was willing to impose “additional tariffs on China of 50%” in response to Beijing’s retaliatory 34% rate.

Early on Tuesday, China called the US‘s imposition of “so-called ‘reciprocal tariffs’… completely groundless” and hinted more retaliatory tariffs may be coming.

A Commerce Ministry statement said: “The US threat to escalate tariffs on China is a mistake on top of a mistake and once again exposes the blackmailing nature of the US. China will never accept this. If the US insists on its own way, China will fight to the end.”

The EU, which is facing a 20% tariff rate from the US, has also warned it could retaliate.

Jonathan Reynolds, the Business Secretary, insisted the Prime Minister did not risk appearing timid if he chose not to follow suit.

He told the BBC’s Newsnight: “I think that’s a total misreading of the situation. Being calm does not mean you’re passive. Being calm is about making sure you’re pursuing your own national interest, in this case, a deeper, fairer trader relationship between ourselves and the US.”

Mr Reynolds added that he was “not relaxed” about the situation across the global economy, but would not be drawn into saying whether he thought the UK was at risk of slipping into recession.

As he welcomed Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House on Monday, Mr Trump also indicated that the USA will hold direct talks with Iran about its nuclear programme.

The talks with Tehran will begin on Saturday, he said, and warned that Iran will be in “great danger” if negotiators are unable to come to terms.

The US wants to prevent Iran from developing its own nuclear weapons.