LONDON: The “world as we knew it” is over and the UK “stands ready” to use direct state intervention to shelter industries from the US tariff storm, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Sunday.
US President Donald Trump’s imposition of sweeping tariffs on Wednesday shows that “old assumptions can no longer be taken for granted,“ Starmer said in a op-ed for the Sunday Telegraph newspaper.
“The world as we knew it has gone,“ he wrote.
The new world will be governed less by established rules and “more by deals and alliances,“ added the prime minister.
“It demands the best of British virtues — cool heads, pragmatism and a clear understanding of our national interest,“ he said.
The UK leader reiterated his government’s belief that “nobody wins from a trade war” and that the immediate strategy was “to keep calm and fight for the best deal.”
However, he insisted a US trade deal will only be struck “if it is right for British business” and that “all options remain on the table” in responding to the 10 percent tariffs on the UK.
In an immediate sign of the tariff fallout, UK luxury car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover said on Saturday that it will “pause” shipments to the United States in April as it addressed “the new trading terms”.
Recognising the shifting global economic sands, Starmer said that he was now prepared to use direct state intervention to protect certain sectors.
“This week we will turbocharge plans that will improve our domestic competitiveness,“ he wrote, ahead of an expected major announcement on industrial strategy.
“We stand ready to use industrial policy to help shelter British business from the storm.
“Some people may feel uncomfortable about this… but we simply cannot cling on to old sentiments when the world is turning this fast,“ he added.
