Starmer ready to deploy King to woo Trump and avoid ‘economic disaster’

The new year has greeted Keir Starmer with a storm of political problems ranging from turmoil in financial markets still NHS winter flu crisis and gas reserves are running out.

But of the growing list of external events and factors over which the Prime Minister has no direct control, the biggest is yet to come: Donald Trump will be sworn in as president of the United States on January 20.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves is We are already prepared for a possible emergency mini-budget in March. and Labor MPs fear Trump could deal a blow to the economy that could cost their party the next election.

An MP said that if Donald Trump decided to impose tariffs against Britain, the prospect of a “real economic disaster” would be “quite terrifying”.

Labor fears US tariffs mean electoral defeat

The Labor politician classified Trump’s trade policy along with issues such as whether China would invade Taiwan as fundamentally “outside our control” global factors that could torpedo Labour’s core mission of boosting economic growth. If the decisions of the next president of the United States were against Great Britain, the parliamentarian said that “it will be very difficult for us to be re-elected.”

But Labor MPs, the government, the Palace and diplomatic experts believe Starmer may still have a trump card, so to speak: the Royal Family.

The parliamentarian said the government’s best bet was to take advantage of Trump’s family ties to Britain and affection for institutions like the monarchy. “Trump likes the United Kingdom. We just have to take advantage of that,” they said.

A second Labor MP, a senior MP, added: “Obviously yes (we need to deploy the Royals). I guess the poor old Royal Family will be spending a lot of time with Trump in the future.”

It is a view shared by diplomats, who for months have been discussing how the Royals could be deployed to help smooth relations between the United Kingdom and the United States under the Trump administration.

The president-elect is an avowed admirer of the monarchy, while No. 10 and Palace insiders privately acknowledge the family’s diplomatic power.

One idea could be to make Trump the first world leader invited to the UK for a second state visit. It would be up to the Government to decide whether or not to issue such a historic invitation, before the Palace began drawing up plans. AND The paper understand that nothing has started on that front… yet. But the idea has not been ruled out and next year is suggested in calendar terms.

As well as the possibility of Trump coming to the UK, planners are considering a possible visit by the Royal Family to mark the 2026 US Semiquincentenary, the 250th anniversary of American independence.

If the King is unable to attend, the Prince and Princess of Wales could replace him.

The Palace is also understood to be open to meetings between Trump and the King outside of a formal state visit; For example, if you wanted to visit one of your golf courses in Scotland, a meeting could be arranged.

A No. 10 source acknowledged that both Trump’s affection for the United Kingdom and the royals are “important” factors in building a relationship.

Palace insiders excited about Trump’s meeting with William

It is understood that everyone in government, diplomacy and the Palace is delighted with a meeting between the Prince and Trump at the reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral in December.

Trump said William was “doing a fantastic job” and the pair spent 40 minutes meeting at the British ambassador’s residence, discussing the relationship between the United Kingdom and the United States, after shaking hands earlier at the reopening ceremony.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy also decided to highlight Trump’s affection for the royals when he spoke to reporters on Thursday.

Asked if he was concerned that Trump allies like Elon Musk were openly courting right-wing leaders across Europe, Lammy said: “The Prime Minister and I were able to sit down for three hours with Donald Trump at Trump Tower in September.

“We had a very good meal. We had a lot of time to discuss the issues.

“He was an extremely kind host, very personable and very warm, about our great country, about the Royal Family, about his love of Scotland and his connection to Scotland in particular. And so we were able to run through the numbers.”

Musk’s threat is taken seriously

But even if Starmer can reach Trump’s ear through the Royals, he has the problem of who is on the other shoulder: namely, boss X, Musk.

The tech billionaire gave the prime minister a rocky start until 2025 by Moving forward with demands for a national inquiry into grooming gangs in the UK.while taking unfettered aim at Starmer and his safeguarding minister, Jess Phillips.

After days of trying to move past the dispute, Starmer felt compelled to intervene on Monday, attacking those “spreading lies and misinformation” about grooming gangs.

In a sign of how seriously the Tesla boss is being taken, Starmer and French President Emmanual Macron are understood to have discussed Trump and Musk during their meeting at Checkers on Thursday night.

When asked if the two were talking about the incoming US administration, government sources said The paper that the two leaders discussed “a wide range of issues.”

Senior Labor officials, including several in the government, hope Musk will fall out with Trump and therefore not be a long-term problem, although the idea was dismissed by a No 10 source as “speculation”.

Senior Labor MP: “I don’t think it’s going to last. I don’t see that Trump is going to tolerate him getting all this attention and take it away from him, so I don’t think we’re going to have to worry for long about any kind of influence he may have. with Trump.”

Meanwhile, No 10 insiders said Starmer would not be derailed by Musk’s jibes and would “focus on preparing” for Trump and there would be “no change of priorities.”

An ally of Starmer added: “You know, Keir, this won’t take his attention away from what he’s concentrating on.”

Whitehall insiders are reassured by some of Trump’s more unconventional rhetoric, for example suggesting that Greenland could become part of the United States and refusing to rule out military action on the issue.

‘Judge Trump by his actions, not his words’

One source suggested the UK was right to adopt an approach of judging Trump for his actions rather than the “breathless” criticism offered by the French and Germans, speculating this could be playing into the gallery’s favor amid the electoral campaigns.

The Government is also confident that the relationship between the UK and the US is much deeper than that which exists between the leaders of the two countries at any given time.

In a sign that the United States and the United Kingdom continue to maintain a close dialogue on security, MI5 Director General Ken McCallum attended the farewell ceremony for outgoing FBI Director Chris Wray, who will leave his position to coincide with the end of Biden’s presidency.

In his remarks in Washington DC on Friday, McCallum focused on the institutional and historical relationship between MI5 and the FBI.

Former ambassador and national security adviser Lord Ricketts said other members of the government, including figures such as the current UK national security adviser (NSA), Jonathan Powell, would speak to Trump’s transition team to ensure they are up to date. , and with candidates for cabinet positions such as secretary. from state candidate Marco Rubio and potential American NSA Mike Waltz

“The problem will be whether any of them speak for Trump,” Ricketts added.

He said the best thing to do when Trump makes outlandish statements about Greenland and Canada is “not to overreact, be clear about the UK’s interests and cooperate closely with other partners.”

Foreign Affairs Committee chair Emily Thornberry said the UK “can bring out the best in” Trump and potentially guide him towards positive results in Ukraine and the Middle East: “It’s going to be unpredictable, but you never know, we want to be as as optimistic as we can. we can be.

“A bold, courageous president who takes on some of the big issues and changes things fundamentally could be an asset to us if they deal with particular issues in a way that a more cautious president might not be able to do.

“But it could also happen completely the other way around.”