Tariffs are announced by the White House at 9 p.m. British time. Education secretary Bridget Phillipson fielded questions on them this morning. On Times Radio she reflected the dour mood of the government now it has failed to secure a deal prior to the imposition of tariffs:
“Discussions are ongoing in terms of securing a wider economic deal with the US and this is undoubtedly a challenging period. A trade war would be in no one’s interest. So the approach that we’re taking as a government is one that is calm and pragmatic. We think that’s what the British people want. It’s what businesses want. We’re focused on continuing with the negotiations with our US counterparts. Our teams are working at pace, have been working really hard in recent weeks to put us in the best possible position to secure a deal. But I think we all recognise this is going to be a difficult period.“
Bridget was asked on Sky News if the tariffs would be enough of a wildcard to change Reeves’ fiscal rules and refused to guarantee them outright:
“I’m not going to speculate on hypotheticals not least because those negotiations are still underway, we’re working incredibly hard to secure a deal that’s in Britain’s national interest… our fiscal rules are important and they do matter but, alongside that through the Spring Statement that the Chancellor recently set out we have been able to take action to address some of the cost of living pressures that people are facing.“
There is significant pressure on Reeves from her own party to alter Labour’s fiscal rules instead of executing spending restraint. They’re not laughing at the OBR any more…
Sarah Pochin at Reform Scotland’s manifesto launch event: “I really wanted to come on in a Reform tartan burka, but apparently I wasn’t allowed… One day let’s do one of these events not live-streamed. We’ll do all the naughty stuff…”