5 Causes Why Donald Trump’s Victory Is A Large Headache For Keir Starmer

Keir Starmer wasted no time in congratulating Donald Trump on his “historic” victory within the US presidential election.

The previous and soon-to-be-again president had not even reached the magic variety of 270 electoral school votes earlier than the Downing Avenue assertion arrived.

“Because the closest of allies, we stand shoulder to shoulder in defence of our shared values of freedom, democracy and enterprise,” the prime minister declared.

Nonetheless, Starmer and his aides can be nicely conscious of the political jeopardy posed by one other Trump presidency.

Right here, HuffPost UK appears to be like on the potential issues for the UK authorities emanating the maverick Republican’s return to the White Home.

For a authorities which has made rising the financial system its primary mission, Trump’s re-election may have critical repercussions.

Goldman Sachs instantly downgraded their forecast for UK financial progress for 2025 from 1.6% to 1.4% on the again of the US outcome, pointing to Trump’s vow to impose tariffs on items getting into America from overseas.

Such a transfer would even be extraordinarily damaging for high-value British exports like Scotch whisky.

A spokesperson for the Scotch Whisky Affiliation stated: “As prime minister Keir Starmer has stated, the UK and US stand shoulder to shoulder and are companions in enterprise.

“To deepen this partnership, the US and UK administrations ought to agree to keep up the zero-tariff commerce of whiskies throughout the Atlantic.”

Whereas the Biden administration has dominated out as US-UK complete commerce settlement, Trump has spoken up to now of his want to get one executed – though he conspicuously failed to take action the final time he was in workplace.

The value Trump would attempt to extract in return for a deal – corresponding to permitting hormone-pumped American beef onto British grocery store cabinets – might prove being too excessive for Starmer to pay.

The PM’s official spokesman would solely say: “We already take pleasure in a thriving financial relationship with the US. There are tens of millions of jobs supported by this relationship, which is value $1 trillion, and clearly we can be looking for to construct on that.”

That will nicely show to be simpler stated than executed.

Trump has made no secret up to now of his want for America’s Nato allies to spend more cash on defence.

On this, not less than, it seems that the brand new US administration may nicely make frequent trigger with Starmer’s authorities.

The PM’s spokesman stated: “The prime minister agrees that different Nato member states should pull their weight in terms of defence spending.”

Labour stated through the election marketing campaign that they might return defence spending to 2.5% of gross home product (GDP) when the monetary circumstances permit.

However defence analyst Francis Tusa warned that will not be sufficient to fulfill Trump, who may name on Nato members to spend 3% of GDP on defence.

Writing on X, he stated: “Equivocation/hesitation received’t be an choice. If the UK is to retain any affect in Europe and Nato, holding again over defence is an epic fail – no-one will settle for the UK holding again.

“That is possible an entire nightmare for Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves. They’ve their plans that they want to pursue, however they face the chance that these plans must take 2nd/third place to defence/international relations, and that implies that the finances follows.”

In contrast to the UK, Trump’s dedication to Ukraine in its conflict with Russia is lower than sure.

He has spoken up to now of with the ability to finish the battle on day one in all his presidency, however that might entail Kyiv having to surrender on territory seized by Russia.

Requested whether or not America’s future stance on Ukraine would have an effect on the UK’s, the PM’s spokesman stated: “Now we have been clear that the UK’s assist for UK is, and all the time will stay, iron-clad.”

Nevertheless, any weakening of America’s assist for Ukraine would have extreme implications for its potential to proceed defending itself – and pose critical questions as as to if the UK and Kyiv’s different allies stay prepared and in a position to present it with the navy and monetary assist it wants.

Trump has made no secret of his disdain for local weather change, describing it as a “hoax” and “one of many nice scams of all time”.

Throughout his first time period in workplace, he withdrew the US from the Paris local weather settlement, whereas he has additionally vowed to “drill child drill” for extra oil.

It’s honest to say, subsequently, that his views on our warming planet are fairly far aside from these of Starmer and Ed Miliband, the vitality and web zero secretary.

Downing Avenue at present tried to place a courageous face on issues, stating that Starmer will journey to the Cop 29 summit in Baku subsequent week to clarify that the UK is able to assume “world management” on tackling local weather change.

However with out the assist of America over the following 4 years, that struggle will develop into even tougher to win.

Regardless of each Starmer and international secretary David Lammy’s makes an attempt to curry favour with the president-elect – the pair held a two-hour dinner with Trump in New York in September – there stays a variety of dangerous blood.

Through the marketing campaign, Donald Trump Jr succinctly defined his household’s views on the UK authorities when he instructed ITV: “It’s absolute lunacy what I see happening within the UK proper now.

“They’re jailing folks for misgendering somebody. Truthfully it’s disgusting and they need to be ashamed of themselves.”

The Trump marketing campaign additionally accused Labour of “interference” within the election as a result of occasion activists crossed the Atlantic to marketing campaign for Kamala Harris.

In his assertion welcoming Trump’s victory, Starmer stated the “UK-US particular relationship will proceed to prosper on each side of the Atlantic for years to return”.

However the subsequent 4 may nicely develop into very rocky certainly.