Keir Starmer says will support UK automakers after Trump tariffs hit

Prime Minister Keir Starmer told UK automakers that the government will support them after US President Donald Trump’s tariffs last week sent the industry into turmoil.

“We are going to back you to the hilt,” Starmer told workers at a Jaguar Land Rover plant in the West Midlands on Monday, speaking alongside Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves. “Nobody is pretending that tariffs are good news. That is a huge challenge for our future.”

Starmer spoke just after US stock exchanges opened with a sea of red numbers as the effects of Trump’s sweeping global tariffs continued to roil markets and fuel concerns of a global recession. In the UK, the FTSE 100 Index was down about 3% 3:35 p.m., adding to the more than 6% already lost since the tariff plan was announced.

Automakers temporarily halt production

The autos industry has been hit particularly hard by Trump’s plan to impose a 25% tariff on cars imported into the US, forcing some manufacturers to temporarily halt production or offer big discounts.

Over the weekend, JLR said it’s pausing shipments to the US as it looks at ways to address the new trading terms, and introducing Starmer and Reeves on Monday, JLR Chief Executive Officer Adrian Mardell challenged the government to “resolve” the “significant threat” posed by the US tariffs.

Starmer reiterated measures announced overnight by the government to help the sector by easing the country’s electric vehicle sales mandate, including by allowing hybrid cars to be sold until 2035 and giving manufacturers more flexibility on vehicle sales up to 2030, while maintaining a 2030 phase-out for selling combustion engine cars.

“These are examples of what we can do at speed, but they’re not the extent of my ambition when it comes to car manufacturing or any other business or sector,” he said. “We can go further and faster, and we will do so.”

The premier also pointed to efforts to help the pharmaceuticals industry, another sector with sizable sales to the US. He announced plans to cut the time it takes to set up a clinical trial to 150 days from 250 days, as well as a £600 million ($770 million) investment in health data and research in Cambridge.

Starmer is trying to show that he’s on the front foot in response to Trump’s tariffs, and over the weekend, he held calls with international leaders including French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to discuss how to respond. The UK is also trying to negotiate its own economic deal with the US, talks that Starmer said are ongoing.

“Obviously we will continue to talk to the US about a deal to alleviate the situation,” he said. “At a moment like this, we have to shape our future. We have to step up. We can’t be cowed.”

Asked about the future of British Steel, which is preparing to close the UK’s two last-remaining blast furnaces, and a potential nationalization, Starmer said that all options are on the table.