Labour MP Tells Donald Trump "Please Think Again" On Steel Tariffs

President Donald Trump boards Air Force One

On Sunday, the new US president said he would announce details of new tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports, raising the prospect of the UK industry being impacted. 

On Monday, Prime Minister Keir Starmer's official spokesperson wouldn't be drawn on the remarks, telling reporters that the government had not received details from US counterparts.

They said ministers "haven't seen any details of the proposal following reporting overnight but we will obviously engage as appropriate". They added that London and Washington "work very closely together on a range of economic issues".

Labour's Clive Betts is an MP whose constituency faces being acutely impacted by tariffs as Sheffield South East is one of the UK's steel manufacturing hubs. Teeside in the northeast and South Wales also play an important part in the British steel sector.

Speaking to PolitcsHome on Monday morning, Betts said he had a "simple message for Mr Trump: please think again."

Sheffield, commonly known as the "steel city", has seen a downturn in the steel industry in recent years, but still has a number of steel fabrication companies.

Betts said Trump's announcement was "a very risky and unfortunate move".

"We have to think about the potential to lose jobs in this country. But in the end, American consumers will pay the price. It is a no-win situation for everyone," said the Labour MP.

"We have to make it clear we think that tariffs in general are not good the UK has a trade situation within the US where we import more than we export and there is certainly no need to make any special measures against the UK."

Jonathan Brash, Labour MP for Hartlepool said the Trump announcement shows "we no longer live in a world that prioritises free trade" and that the UK "must decide to play on the same pitch as everyone else".

He added that the UK imports 68 per cent of the steel used in the UK, something which is "totally unacceptable".

"We must work at pace to protect our steel industry through trade measures, invest in it to increase domestic capacity and secure it by ramping up public procurement. We need to build British and put our steel industry first.”

Brash added that the UK should retaliate with tariffs of its own in order to protect the British sector. 

“There are a range of trade measures we can and should deploy to protect our steel industry and we should do it across the board. The biggest challenge we face is actually the overproduction from China," he told PoliticsHome.

The PM's official spokesperson stressed that "British-made steel is an essential part of the UK industrial heartland".

"That's why, since the election, we have boosted investment, continued to cut costs and focused on its future through a new steel strategy," they told reporters.

However, they also sought to put "into context" the role exports to the US play in the British steel sector.

"The US accounted for around five per cent of UK steel exports in 2023. Around six per cent of aluminium exports in 2023," they said.

One minister told PoliticsHome that they were concerned about the possibility of the government making concessions on online safety regulation to major US tech firms to avoid tariffs on British goods exported across the Atlantic.

The Online Safety Act could lead to social media giants being fined millions of pounds if they fail to remove harmful content from their platforms.

The PM's official spokesperson insisted on Monday that companies face "significant fines" and "legal action" if they fail to adhere to the new legislation.

"The Online Safety Act is already law," they said.

"It's already being implemented and over the coming months, it will introduce strong protections for children, tackle illegal content online and oblige all social media companies to remove illegal content and content harmful to children here in the UK."

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