A senior economic adviser to Donald Trump has urged Sir Keir Starmer to pursue closer ties with the US and not the “socialist” European Union if it is interested in a trade deal.
The president-elect has indicated the US could introduce blanket tariffs of up to 20 per cent on imported goods and up to 60 per cent for imports from China.
This action would likely trigger a global trade war which the Republican thinks could bolster American industry and create more jobs - but could cause economic damage to the UK.
Mr Trump would be less interested in a free trade deal with Britain if it follows Sir Keir’s preference for a closer alignment with the EU, adviser Stephen Moore has said, according to the Times.
Last month, the prime minister held meetings with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, European Council chief Charles Michel and the European Parliament’s Roberta Metsola as part of efforts to “put Brexit behind us”.
This stance has the backing of Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey, who said this week that the UK must try to strengthen its economic relations with the continental block.
Mr Moore, a conservative writer who has backed Mr Trump since 2016, spoke to the Times from the president elect’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida.
He said: “I’ve always said that Britain has to decide — do you want to go towards the European socialist model or do you want to go towards the US free market?
“Lately it seems like they are shifting more in a European model and so if that’s the case I think we’d be less interested in having [a free trade deal].
“I hope they would move towards freedom but that doesn’t seem to be the case given the budget that they just came out with in London.”
Britain was close to signing a free trade deal with Mr Trump’s last administration in 2020 but the deal broke down over Whitehall’s concerns over food standards.
Mr Moore said he wanted a deal with the Boris Johnson administration.
“I’ve always been in favour of a free trade agreement with the Brits but for one reason or another it hasn’t happened,” Mr Moore added.
“It would make sense to me … I think we do have a special relationship with the Brits more than we do with the Germans and the French and the rest of Europe.”
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has not addressed Mr Moore’s claims specifically but has told ITV News that imports of chlorinated chicken or hormone-treated beef would be prohibited.
She said: “We are not going to allow British farmers to be undercut by different rules and regulations in other countries.”
She added that she feels growth needs to be stronger in light of stagnating economic conditions, with the UK economy shrinking in September.
US imposed tariffs, without an agreement, could be disastrous for the UK with the National Institute of Economic and Social Research estimating it would halve GDP growth in the UK.
This could lead to inflation rising by 3 to 4 percentage points.
“We will work with president elect Donald Trump, and we look forward to doing that, to improve trade between our two countries,” Ms Reeves added in her ITV interview.
She did not say if Britain could impose retaliatory tariffs on the US, a move favoured by the European Union.
