Latest news with #David Lammy
The Sun
a day ago
- Business
- The Sun
Labour admits Brexit helped UK get better trade deal with Trump as EU leaders say he ‘ate von der Leyen for breakfast'
LABOUR has conceded that Brexit Britain helped secure a better trade deal with America than Brussels. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds insisted there was 'absolutely no doubt' the UK was better off being separated from the European Union. 1 The comments come as EU products heading Stateside will be subject to a 15 per cent levy while UK goods will only face a 10 per cent surcharge. He told Sky News: 'All of the trade negotiations that we've got use the fact that we are not part of the customs union anymore, I'm absolutely clear of that. I think we can make the best of that.' When asked if he would label it as a benefit to exiting the EU, he said: 'I'm absolutely clear, I've said in Parliament many times, this is a benefit of being out of the European Union, having our independent trade policy, absolutely no doubt about that.' Foreign Secretary David Lammy said back in April that Brexit had nothing to do with securing a better deal for escaping the worst of Donald Trump's tariffs. Mr Reynolds also said there is "more to do" on UK steel when it comes to the UK-US trade deal. The UK secured zero tariffs on steel but the US hasn't enacted it yet as they have concerns over how it would actually work. He said "it's really important to have the president here" and the visit offers "a chance to do a bit of business". He added: "We were very happy to announce the breakthrough that we had a few months ago in relation to sectors like automotive, aerospace, which are really important to the UK economy. "But we always said it was job saved, but it wasn't job done. There's more to do. "The negotiations have been going on on a daily basis since then. There's a few issues to push a little bit further today. "We won't perhaps have anything to announce a resolution of those talks, but there's some sectors that we still need to resolve, particularly around steel and aluminium, and there's the wider conversation about what the US calls its reciprocal tariffs." Donald Trump and Sir Keir Starmer have agreed to work together on the deal following their meeting in Scotland, Number 10 said. Meanwhile, EU chief Ursula von der Leyen has been blasted over her negotiations for the deal which is worse than the UK pact. Viktor Orban, the Hungarian leader, said: ' Donald Trump ate von der Leyen for breakfast.' France Prime Minister Francois Bayrou said it was a 'dark day' for the submission to the US.
The National
a day ago
- Politics
- The National
Starmer has run out of road on Palestinian statehood
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer's late-life emergence as a politician means that he has been dogged by questions over how politically effective his instincts are. The devastation of Gaza is something that obviously transcends politics – or at least it should. Yet, as the objective reality of the Palestinians' suffering is broadcast daily on television sets across the UK, Mr Starmer's political response to Israel's war could not be more exposed. In the 22 months since the outbreak of the conflict, Mr Starmer has been entirely consistent to the extent that he has steadily lost almost the entirety of his supporters for his position. A letter late last week exposed how the Prime Minister had been reduced to playing for time. More than 200 MPs signed a letter calling on the UK to recognise Palestine statehood, as almost 150 nation states have done. French President Emmanuel Macron has committed his country to declaring its recognition in September at the UN General Assembly annual meeting in New York. A conference this week co-hosted with Saudi Arabia at the UN sees Paris promote the two-state solution with recognition at its heart. UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy is expected to attend. Yet Mr Starmer has so far withheld the decision to join the French in the new drive to make real recognition for Palestine among the most powerful countries of the G7 bloc. For weeks, London's political calculation has been that pressure from the Knesset presented Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with an opportunity to change course. There was also the arrival to Britain of US President Donald Trump, who is holding court on his Scottish golf courses. These ultra-luxury venues have not only been a sporting paradise for Mr Trump, but also a diplomatic platform for him. On Sunday, he secured a trade deal with EU, which he called the biggest yet. On Monday, Mr Starmer spent the day with him. There, aides said Mr Starmer would use his good standing with the American leader to press his point on Gaza. The British leader said he was working with Mr Trump to find a way to address the starvation of Gazans. Mr Trump said, for the first time, that the hunger in the Strip was real and couldn't be faked. 'We can work not just on the pressing issues of the ceasefire, but also on this issue of getting humanitarian aid in at volume, at speed,' Mr Starmer said. The US President said he was pressing Mr Netanyahu to find a different way to bring the plight of the hostages to a resolution. 'I'm going to say it's a very difficult situation,' Mr Trump said. 'If they didn't have the hostages, things would go very quickly, but they do, and we know where they have them, in some cases, and you don't want to go riding roughshod over that area, because that means those hostages will be killed.' The reckoning, as the UK House of Commons' Foreign Affairs Committee put it, was that Mr Netanyahu listens to only one foreign leader: Mr Trump. Even then the Israeli Prime Minister defies Washington, so only a big pep talk from Mr Starmer could get the US leader into a frame of mind to intervene meaningfully. All that was a calculation rather than a guaranteed outcome. Mr Starmer's team did not want to alienate Mr Trump by announcing the UK's recognition in advance of their meeting. Alienating the US President would provide some poor dynamics for the Scotland meetings, something Mr Starmer was not prepared to countenance. UK Secretary of State for Business and Trade Jonathan Reynolds – the cabinet minister among the closest to Mr Starmer – echoed the judgment that only the US has leverage in the current situation. He pointed out that two temporary ceasefires were brought about by US involvement. Downing Street has said the same thing, although it appears to be ignoring the fact that US envoy Steve Witkoff withdrew from the process last week. Mr Reynolds was asked repeatedly about the prospect of the Prime Minister caving into political pressure this week. Despite the recess, the cabinet is set to meet for a discussion on Palestine, setting speculation off that a U-turn was coming. In advance of any new approach emerging, Mr Reynolds raised the standing concern from Mr Starmer's camp that recognition must not be a 'tokenistic' exercise. Deploying the decision once should have a tangible impact. 'It is a case of when, not if,' he said. 'It's about how we use this moment, because you can only do it once to have a meaningful breakthrough.' That line has held sway at Westminster for quite some time. However, not only has the number of MPs in the Labour party rejecting it openly now into the hundreds, but up to half the cabinet are now holding private briefings that this cannot stand. For most, there is a moral and humanitarian imperative that cannot wait. History, too, is powerful here. As the country that intervened through the Balfour Declaration to endorse Zionism's project to settle in Palestine, there are many in London who believe that Britain has a historic responsibility to promote equal rights for Palestinians and Israelis. The Labour government that took power last year was overtly committed to 'leading on international law issues', something that suggested a spirit of rebalancing how the UK developed its policies. Most remarkably, however, Attorney General Richard Hermer has not developed a response to the International Court of Justice's provisional measures on the Gaza conflict. Mr Starmer is a distinguished lawyer in this field and if his political skills have come under scrutiny on this issue, then it is a double indictment that his legal expertise appears to have disappeared as well. There is ultimately no riddle here. Mr Starmer has played for time for so long on this issue that he has utterly run out of road for his position on Palestine.
BBC News
4 days ago
- Politics
- BBC News
UK condemns Hong Kong cash offer for help in arresting activists
The UK has condemned the latest cash offer from Hong Kong authorities for people who help in the arrest of pro-democracy activists living in Britain. In a joint statement, Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper described the move as "another example of transnational repression".People are being offered between $25,000 (HK$200,000) and $125,000 for information leading to the arrest of 19 individuals, all of whom are pro-democracy activists living abroad. China has denounced as "interference" criticism over this type of appeal, which it has made three times previously. The 19 people are accused of violating Beijing's national security law imposed in 2020 in response to the 2019 anti-government protests that rocked the city for amounts on offer vary depending on the individual. Among the highest offers on the list are those for Choi Ming-da and Fok Ka-chi, who Hong Kong police said operated a social media channel named "Tuesdayroad". Politician Nathan Law – who had been a lawmaker on the Legislative Council of Hong Kong – and activist and commentator Yuan Gong-Yi also appear on the lists. The first such rewards were issued in July and December 2023. They targeted Nathan Law - who told the BBC that his life became more dangerous after a bounty was announced - and Simon Cheng, a former UK consulate employee detained in 2019 in a high-profile case. The third series of rewards targeted six pro-democracy activists living in the UK and Canada, including Tony Chung, the former leader of a pro-independence group. A special visa scheme introduced in 2021 saw around 150,000 Hong Kong residents move to the UK, according to the Home Office. In November last year a Hong Kong court sentenced dozens of pro-democracy leaders to years in jail for subversion, following a controversial national security their statement in response to the latest bounty, Ms Cooper and Mr Lammy said "this government will continue to stand with the people of Hong Kong, including those who have made the UK their home. We take the protection of their rights, freedoms, and safety very seriously."Their joint statement added: "The UK is committed to human rights, the rule of law, and the safety of all individuals in the UK. That's why we have taken further steps to complete the severing of ties between the UK and Hong Kong extradition systems by removing Hong Kong from the Extradition Act 2003."
Russia Today
4 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
A third of UK MPs urge Starmer to recognize Palestine
A third of the UK House of Commons has called on Prime Minister Keir Starmer to officially recognize Palestine, as pressure mounts on Israel to allow aid into the besieged Gaza Strip. The appeal follows French President Emmanuel Macron's pledge to recognize Palestinian statehood at the UN General Assembly in September. Both Israel and the US criticized the move, arguing it would embolden Hamas. In a letter published on Friday, 221 MPs from nine parties urged Starmer and Foreign Secretary David Lammy to grant recognition as part of the UK's longstanding support for a two-state solution. 'Whilst we appreciate the UK does not have it in its power to bring about a free and independent Palestine, UK recognition would have a significant impact due to our historic connections and our membership on the UN Security Council,' the letter said. The MPs argued that Britain has a particular responsibility, having administered the Mandate for Palestine from 1919 to 1948. According to The Guardian, Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, and Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood are among the cabinet ministers lobbying for the move. Despite growing pressure, Starmer has stopped short of an immediate commitment. 'Recognition of a Palestinian state has to be one of those steps. I am unequivocal about that. But it must be part of a wider plan which ultimately results in a two-state solution and lasting security for Palestinians and Israelis,' he said on Friday after a phone call with Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. The three leaders called for a ceasefire and urged Israel to 'immediately lift restrictions on the flow of aid' into Gaza. They also said Hamas must disarm and 'must have no role in the future of Gaza.' The Kremlin reaffirmed on Friday that Russia has recognized Palestinian statehood since Soviet times and continues to support a two-state solution under international law.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Britain and Australia to sign 50-year nuclear submarine treaty
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Britain and Australia announced they will sign a cooperation treaty to build Australian nuclear-powered submarines and welcomed a review by U.S. President Donald Trump's administration of the United States' role in the trilateral defense deal. Britain's Defense Secretary John Healey and Foreign Secretary David Lammy met Friday with their Australian counterparts Richard Marles and Penny Wong in Sydney for an annual bilateral meeting. Marles said he and Healey will sign a 50-year treaty Saturday that will underpin bilateral cooperation on building an Australian fleet of submarines powered by U.S. nuclear technology. 'It is as significant a treaty as has been signed between our two countries since federation,' Marles said, referring to the unification of several British colonies to form the Australian government in 1901. The three-way alliance was announced in 2021 to contend with growing Chinese military might in the Asia-Pacific region. It would deliver Australia at least eight submarines including three to five second-hand U.S. Virginia-class submarines. Britain and Australia would cooperate to build their own SSN-AUKUS submarines. US reviewing AUKUS trilateral submarine deal U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is reviewing the pact, known by the acronym AUKUS, that was entered into by U.S. President Joe Biden's administration. There are concerns that the U.S. won't provide Australia with its first Virginia-class submarine by the early 2030s as planned because U.S. submarine-building was behind schedule. Marles and Healey declined to speculate on whether Britain and Australia would continue with jointly building submarines if the U.S. pulled out when questioned at a press conference. 'Australia and the U.K. welcome the review because we see this as a chance for a new administration to renew their commitment to AUKUS. And that's what we expect,' Healey said. 'Any sort of hypotheticals that you suggest simply aren't part of the picture,' Healey added, referring to the prospect of Britain and Australia proceeding without the U.S. The Australian government confirmed this week it had paid the U.S. a second $500 million installment on the AUKUS deal. The first $500 million was paid in February. The submarines are expected cost Australia up to $245 billion. The meeting comes as 3,000 British military personnel take part in the largest military exercise ever conducted in Australia. British aircraft carrier joins Australian war games More than 35,000 military personnel from 19 nations are taking part in Exercise Talisman Sabre, which began in 2005 as a biennial joint exercise between the U.S. and Australia. Marles and Healey will inspect the British aircraft HMS Prince of Wales at the northern port of Darwin on Sunday. The carrier is in Australia to take part in the war games. Lammy said the carrier's arrival in Darwin was meant to send a clear signal to the world. 'With our carrier strike group docking in Darwin, I think we're sending a clear signal, a signal of the U.K.'s commitment to this region of the world. Our determination to keep the Indo-Pacific free and open, and that we stand together,' he said. Rod Mcguirk, The Associated Press Sign in to access your portfolio
