UK-US Trade and Tariffs

Lord Leong Excerpts

Thursday 3rd April 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bilimoria (CB)]

I congratulate the Minister on her appointment. This is our first interaction. We served on the GREAT campaign advisory council for many years until her ministerial appointment. I am reassured to hear that the Government want to be cool, calm and collected. I am also reassured that the Government are doing their best to try to get a deal with the United States of America. Donald Trump likes deals, so let us try to get one with President Trump.

However, although the United States has £300 billion-plus of trade with the UK, we have £126 billion in services exports to the US—a huge services surplus that nobody talks about—which is not applicable for these tariffs. We should make the most of that strength. Even in goods, we have a small surplus. But the United States is only 13% of the world’s trade. Surely we should work with the other 87% of countries around the world to make sure that we continue with the rules-based multilateral trading system.

Secondly, the Minister mentioned growth, and I will raise one of the best ways to generate growth. I am chair of the International Chamber of Commerce here, ICC UK. The ICC is the largest business organisation in the world, with 45 million members. Before these tariffs were announced, we laid out a plan for growth that could unlock £25 billion in trade growth. By digitising trade, we can take what takes three months on a paper-based trade down to one hour. Why do we not, as leaders, champion digital trade around the world and take a leadership role in these turbulent times?

[Lord in Waiting/Government Whip (Lord Leong) (Lab)]

Before my noble friend answers the noble Lord’s question, I urge all noble Lords to keep their remarks brief and put questions to the Minister rather than making this Statement an occasion for wider debate. This will allow all noble Lords who wish to receive answers to their questions to do so.

[Baroness Gustafsson (Lab)]

My Lords, it is a joy to be here with the noble Lord again, and I thank him for his question. Why do we not work with all sides and not just the US? My role is Minister for Investment, and I love trade and investment—and I do not see that this is a matter of decisions. I want to have a strong and vibrant trading relationship with the US, I want to have a strong and vibrant relationship with Europe, and I want to have a strong and vibrant trading relationship with many of the emerging economies. This is something that we can navigate; it is not a situation where we need to pick one at the cost of the other, and I am really excited about seeing how we build and develop on all those trading relationships all around the world.

On growth, I share the noble Lord’s passion. I believe that the digital trade that we have is a huge opportunity. Already there is a lot that we do in the services piece that is worthy of celebration. Stitching that together alongside the digital surely has to be the future of the growth-driving economies that we see coming out of the UK. If I can promise noble Lords one thing, it is that I will be an advocate and ambassador as we champion the growth that we can drive through digital trade.