Britain says retaliation is possible over new US tariffs on steel and aluminium imports

LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer expressed disappointment Wednesday over the Trump administration's decision to impose tariffs on global steel and aluminium imports, and said a retaliatory response was possible.

During his weekly questioning in the House of Commons, Starmer said his government was taking a "pragmatic approach" but "we will keep all options on the table."

Starmer, leader of the centre-left Labour Party, said negotiations with the Trump administration over a bilateral trade deal were ongoing.

Starmer was responding to a question from the leader of the centrist Liberal Democrats, Ed Davey, who said the UK should be taking a "more robust" approach with the US president "like the Europeans and like the Canadians."

Britain is not part of the European Union, which Wednesday announced import taxes on American goods, ranging from steel and aluminium to bourbon, peanut butter and jeans in response to Trump's move.

Starmer has worked to build strong ties with President Donald Trump, in hope of avoiding the tariffs levied on many other US trading partners. After a meeting last month at the White House, Trump and Starmer said their governments would work on sealing a long-elusive US-UK trade deal.

The tariffs are a new blow for Britain's once-mighty steel industry, which has shrunk dramatically from its 1970s peak and now accounts for 0.1 per cent of the economy. Thousands of jobs are due to be lost at the country's biggest steelworks, at Port Talbot in Wales, as owner Tata Steel tries to make the unprofitable plant leaner and greener.

Trade body UK Steel said that in 2024, Britain exported 180,000 metric tons (198,000 US tons) of steel to the United States, about 7 per cent of the UK's total steel exports by volume and 9 per cent by value. The aluminium industry says the U.S. market accounts for 10 per cent of UK exports.

Without pushing for an immediate retaliatory response, Unite, the UK's biggest union, said the government should use UK-produced steel in public sector projects.

"Our government must act decisively to protect the steel industry and its workers following the announcement of US tariffs," Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said. "This is a matter of national security."

Follow The Gleaner on X and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com.