Brits fear Keir Starmer will bungle Washington mission with 57% saying he will be ‘bad’ at negotiating with Donald Trump, and even Labour voters split_Nhy
Brits fear Keir Starmer will bungle crucial negotiations with Donald Trump in the White House today.
Some 57 per cent believe the PM will be either ‘very bad’ or ‘fairly bad’ at negotiating with the US president, according to a poll.
That compared to just 23 per cent who thought Sir Keir would be good at the discussions. Another 21 per cent were not sure, the YouGov research found.
Even those who voted Labour last year were split, saying he will perform well by a marginal 41 per cent to 39 per cent.
Sir Keir is facing the biggest test of his premiership, with a bewildering array of potential flashpoints to be covered.
He has been appealing for Mr Trump to stop Vladimir Putin ‘coming again’ after a rushed peace deal, arguing America must help guarantee the terms.
Brits fear Keir Starmer (pictured in Washington last night) will bungle crucial negotiations with Donald Trump in the White House today
Sir Keir is also pitching for the UK to be spared tariffs as the White House goes on the attack over what it claims are unfair trade arrangements with the rest of the world.
The PM is thought to be armed with an invite from the King for a state visit to the UK as he bids to win over the president.
But Mr Trump did not seem in a mood to change course last night, telling a Cabinet meeting the US would not be providing security guarantees ‘beyond very much’, despite an agreement with Ukraine on sharing mineral wealth. He said ‘we’re going to have Europe do that’.
The commander-in-chief suggested Ukraine could ‘forget about’ joining Nato, appearing to blame the alliance for Russia’s invasion. ‘That’s probably the reason the whole thing started,’ he said.
Mr Trump also insisted 25 per cent tariffs will be imposed on the EU, which he has said was formed to ‘screw’ the US.
Britain is currently facing tariffs on steel exports, and the threat of ‘reciprocal’ tariffs to offset VAT – even though that is a general sales tax rather than a charge on imports.
Sir Keir is facing the biggest test of his premiership as he sits down with Mr Trump (pictured)
