Starmer’s EU-US high-wire act risks stumbling… February 5, 2025 From headaches over Europe, to managing Sino-philes vs sceptics, the job of a prime minister – particularly when it comes to foreign policy – can often resemble something of a high-wire act, usually minus a safety net. Get it wrong, and the consequences could be severe, but pull it off, and the rewards are plentiful. Enforcing [...]
Brexit is ‘settled’, Sir Keir Starmer says amid calls for customs deal with EU February 2, 2025 Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has rejected suggestions the UK will rejoin the EU, saying the decision is “settled” as he faces calls to broker a customs union with the bloc. The Prime Minister will meet European Council leaders on Monday as he continues efforts to “reset” Britain’s relationship with the trade bloc. The focus [...]
President Trump threatens to double tax rates for foreign firms January 22, 2025 Donald Trump has threatened to double tax rates for foreign nationals and companies in the US in what he said was a bid to hit back at “discriminatory” duties on American firms. The President set out a memo on his ‘America first’ trade policy on Monday which referred to an almost 100-year old element of [...]
Badenoch refuses Reform merger as she says UK ‘getting poorer’ January 16, 2025 Kemi Badenoch has said Britain is “getting poorer” and “living off the inheritance” of past generations, as she refused any suggestion of a merger between the Tories and Reform UK. The Conservative leader made her first speech of 2025 in central London on Thursday. She focused on the past mistakes of her party in what [...]
Brexit hit to UK trade not as bad as first thought December 18, 2024 The negative impact Brexit had on UK trade may have been softened by big firms adapting to EU barriers, fresh research from a top London university has shown. A report from the Centre for Economic Performance, linked to the London School of Economics, found that “in the short run, aggregate trade proved moderately resilient” to [...]
UK becomes first European nation to join CPTPP trade bloc December 14, 2024 Britain will become a member of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) on Sunday.
Reeves promises ‘deeper, more mature’ economic relationship with EU December 9, 2024 Rachel Reeves has pledged to build a “deeper, more mature relationship” with European trading partners in the first speech by a UK chancellor to eurozone finance ministers since 2020. Speaking to the Eurogroup in Brussels on Monday, Reeves also brushed off the suggestion that Britain must choose between closer ties with the US and EU [...]
Boost ‘growth prospects’ with reset, Reeves to tell EU finance meeting December 8, 2024 Rachel Reeves will argue that a more business-like relationship with the EU can help Britain boost its “growth prospects”, at a meeting with the bloc’s finance ministers. Reeves will on Monday address the European Union’s financial heads in Brussels, becoming the first Chancellor to do so since Brexit, ahead of her next overseas visit to [...]
How should the UK respond to Donald Trump’s tariffs? December 4, 2024 Trump's taste for tariffs is well known, proudly proclaiming in the election campaign it was the most beautiful word in the dictionary.
Ministers seek EU negotiator to lead reset talks November 23, 2024 Ministers are hiring a new EU negotiator as Keir Starmer seeks to reset Britain’s relationship with Europe. The post, worth at least £150,000 a year and advertised by the Cabinet Office, would act as a “sherpa” for all of the UK’s dealings with the bloc. The role is described as “principal adviser to the prime [...]