The UK is “not the target” of potential US tariffs after Donald Trump’s presidential election victory, a trade expert has told Sky News.
Duncan Edwards, the chief executive of BritishAmerican Business, said Mr Trump‘s return to the White House could also mean fresh free trade agreement talks with the US.
Discussions stalled under Joe Biden due to the current president’s concerns over Northern Ireland and the legality of post-Brexit regulations.
President-elect Trump has frequently mentioned his support for trade tariffs.
He said they could increase revenues, and also encourage internal US trade rather than using international markets.
“Well, the first thing to say is the UK is not the target,” Mr Edwards said.
“And there will be an opportunity for the UK to re-enter trade negotiations as they did four years ago.
“And let’s see if they’re practical and agile about how they approach that process… they have a chance of an agreement.”
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What are ‘Trumponomics’?
Mr Trump wants to impose the highest tariffs on China.
He said before he won the 5 November election that he would raise tariffs on Chinese goods to 60% and impose a “universal” tax of at least 10% on imports from other countries.
One US governor – Democrat Phil Murphy of New Jersey – believes Mr Trump will not impose tariffs on the UK.
Speaking to Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips on Sky News, Treasury minister Darren Jones said the UK was considering “lots of different scenarios”.
He added that his government’s position was to “support free trade” – including between the United States and United Kingdom.
Mr Jones said: “It’s a very strong, very fruitful relationship, both for us but also for the American economy and of course we want to protect that and strengthen it in the years ahead.”
He added: “And I think President-elect Trump has said that.
“He recognises the important relationship the US has with the UK, and that’s the basis on which we will be co-operating in future years.”
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There were several rounds of free trade negotiations between the UK and the US under the last Trump administration.
However, with President Biden pulling support for such a deal, the UK has in the meantime signed agreements with various states, including Texas and Florida.
Talk of a trade deal with the US might raise the spectre of issues like “chlorinated chicken” being allowed into the UK.
Mr Edwards said that, due to the wide support Mr Trump has in agricultural areas, any deal would likely need to allow US food products into the UK – and vice versa.
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“That’s where the political difficulty will be,” he said – while insisting US food was safe.
He said chlorinated chicken was “a shorthand”, and that the difference between food standards was “not a safety issue” and would make groceries cheaper.
A public body that spent more than £77,000 to send a senior executive to take a course at Harvard University in the US has defended the decision, by telling MSPs it invests in its staff to stop them from being “poached”.
The Water Industry Commission for Scotland (WICS) – which regulates Scottish Water – was accused of “poor governance” with public funds in a report by the Auditor General last year, and today faced scrutiny at Holyrood.
Its representatives insisted the culture had changed at the regulator, as they struggled to justify questionable spending highlighted in last year’s audit – including £2,600 to provide every staff member with a £100 gift card for Christmas and £402 on a dinner for two.
The report by the Auditor General found that the “financial management and governance issues found at the commission fall far short of what is expected of a public body”.
After the report, WICS chief executive Alan Sutherland quit with immediate effect in December and was awarded six months’ pay in lieu of his contractual notice period. While an exact figure for this was not provided, in 2021 the commission said the chief executive officer’s annual salary was more than £165,000.
A total of £77,350 was claimed for the Harvard Business School course attended by chief operating officer Michelle Ashford, which included business class flights to Boston.
Approval was only sought afterwards for the expenses, despite Scottish government approval being required in advance for any service above £20,000.
‘We find it difficult to compete with private sector’
Holyrood’s public audit committee criticised the money spent on the Harvard course during its meeting on Thursday.
MSP Jamie Greene questioned whether the organisation had been “running like a private sector business instead of a public sector body”.
Professor Donald MacRae, chair of the board at WICS, said the board should have been asked for approval first and accepted that the value for money for the Harvard course was “not fully demonstrated and the business case was inadequate”.
However, he explained: “WICS is a small public body operating in a very complex and specialised area, and we do find it difficult to compete on salaries with the private sector and actually to retain staff.
“And our staff are frequently subject to approaches to being poached, actually.
“Now, we recognise that our staff are our most important asset, and we take the view that we have to invest in them. And we have to invest in them by offering advanced management training.”
Image: Professor Donald MacRae, chair of the board at WICS. Pic: Scottish Parliament TV
Despite Professor MacRae’s argument about retaining staff, the committee also heard no conditions were put in place ito ensure Ms Ashford stayed with WICS for a certain period of time after attending the course in the US.
Going forward, Professor MacRae said WICS will “still adhere to the policy of investing” in its staff.
But he added the organisation will look for alternative training “within Scotland or the UK at much lower cost” in the future, to deliver “better value for money”.
Richard Leonard MSP, committee convener, accused Jon Rathjen, deputy director for water policy at the Scottish government, of being “complicit” in the failures at WICS, in that he did not challenge the spending on the Harvard course.
Image: Richard Leonard MSP. Pic: Scottish Parliament TV
Mr Rathjen accepted he “made an error of judgement” in relying on an assurance from the WICS chief executive.
He said WICS had approached the Scottish government to approve the spending retrospectively and refusing it would not have achieved anything.
Image: Jon Rathjen, deputy director for water policy at the Scottish government. Pic: Scottish Parliament TV
‘Nice work if you can get it’
With regards to other spending at WICS, MSP Graham Simpson raised a £402.41 meal at the Champany Inn in Linlithgow, West Lothian, where then chief executive Mr Sutherland was dining with an official from the New Zealand government in October 2022.
David Satti, who has recently become the interim accountable officer at WICS, said no itemised receipt had been provided and the expense had been covered on an office credit card, adding: “We have no way of knowing the exact items that were purchased.”
Image: David Satti, interim accountable officer at WICS. Pic: Scottish Parliament TV
Professor MacRae said the meal had been wrongly coded as “subsistence” but nevertheless had been “instrumental” in securing income of £1.2m from New Zealand.
Mr Simpson was also told that WICS workers sent to New Zealand were allowed to book business class as the flight is over six hours.
The MSP sarcastically responded: “Nice work if you can get it.”
Colin Beattie MSP questioned whether it was “unusual” for a public body to give staff members Christmas vouchers.
Image: Colin Beattie MSP. Pic: Scottish Parliament TV
In regards to the £100 gift cards, which exceeded the £75 limit for gifts, Professor MacRae said: “You must remember the situation we were in, a situation where we were all operating remotely and still in the process of recovering from COVID.
“That was the background to the decision.”
It was heard that WICS has no intention to give out gift cards to staff members at Christmas in the future.
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At the start of the meeting, Professor MacRae said there had been a “change of culture and focus on value for money” since the Audit Scotland report.
But MSP Willie Coffey delivered a damning verdict on the spending at WICS, saying: “I’ve been a member of the parliament, in the audit committee on and off for 17 years, and I have to say to you colleagues that this is one of the worst sessions I’ve ever participated in.”
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WICS has a statutory duty to promote the interests of Scottish Water’s customers. It is funded via a levy on Scottish Water.
The organisation has 26 staff and had an income of about £5.3m last year.
Royal Mail has revealed new stamps for Christmas 2023 – and shared the best dates for posting your cards to make sure they get delivered on time.
This year’s batch of festive stamps contains images inspired by the themes of Christmas carols and feature lyrics from O Holy Night, O Little Town Of Bethlehem, Silent Night, Away In A Manger and We Three Kings.
The festive stamps are the first to feature the silhouette of the King, with last year’s still adorned with that of Queen Elizabeth II.
Royal Mail’s new stamps also allow customers to watch a Christmas-themed video created by the award-winning Aardman animation studio.
The embedded video – accessed via the barcodes on the stamps – shows Shaun the Sheep and his friends sending some festive cheer to the farmer’s dog.
Image: Royal Mail’s five new Christmas stamps
The first Christmas stamps, issued in December 1966, were the result of a children’s art competition announced by the then postmaster general Tony Benn.
David Gold, Royal Mail’s director of external affairs and policy, said: “For many, the launch of the annual Christmas stamps is the signal to begin writing those Christmas cards.
“The charming style of these designs, which were inspired by the carols that are so familiar to us all, set the perfect tone for the festive season.”
The stamp designs were created exclusively for Royal Mail by illustrator Tom Duxbury – a specialist in the medium of woodblock printing – to depict both vintage and modern scenes.
Mr Duxbury has worked on book covers including Philip Pullman’s Serpentine and The Collectors and Sarah Ridgard’s Seldom Seen.
He said: “‘It’s been a privilege to illustrate the first set of Christmas stamps to bear the silhouette of His Majesty King Charles III. The theme of nativity became a chance to create rich, luminous nightscapes.
“They echo my own experiences of being out in nature at night – especially the moors where I live.
“This time and place holds a special kind of feeling; that of stillness, softness, and magic.”
Image: Royal Mail’s ‘Silent Night’ Christmas stamp
Royal Mail is also encouraging customers to order online gifts and shopping well in advance and to post their festive greetings early in order to help its staff deliver bumper festive mailbags.
Its latest recommended posting dates for mail to arrive in time for Christmas are 18 December for second class, 19 December for first class and 22 December for special delivery guaranteed.
Noel Gallagher says his brother Liam should “get his people to call my people” about an Oasis reunion.
Noel made the comments in an interview with radio station France Inter, days after Liam sparked fresh hope that a reunion may be on the cards by telling a fan on Twitter that “it’s happening”.
Speaking to the French media outlet, Noel said there’s “something in the papers back in England today”.
“He should get his people to call my people. They know who they are, they know where we are, stop talking on the f****** internet, let’s see what you’ve gotta say,” he says.
The interviewer then asks if it’s “just a question of a phone call?”
“You would think, right? You would think. He’s got my number, he’s got my manager’s number, call us.”
Noel then adds: “But you know what? He won’t call.”
The group disbanded in 2009, with Gallagher quitting following a confrontation with his younger brother Liam at the Rock en Seine festival near Paris.
Following Noel’s interview, Liam tweeted saying: “Here’s how I see it the little fella aka potato has done a lot of damage to Oasis as a band / brand he’s got a lot of making up to do not just to me but to you the fans the people that put us where we are tday as you were LG x.”
The age-old debate about an Oasis reunion still gets fans excited. Even the slightest hint that it may actually happen can restart hopeful rumours.
Image: Noel Gallagher and Sara Macdonald announced their divorce earlier this year. Pic: AP
Fans have long believed that Noel’s estranged wife was at the heart of his dispute with his brother – and his changing tone since their divorce this year suggests there could be something in that.
The Mancunian brothers have been infamously embroiled in an intense sibling rivalry ever since Oasis went their separate ways.
Liam has often been publicly in favour of a reunion, with Noel usually the more reluctant of the two.
However, the older Gallagher has previously joked he would reunite the band for £100m.
While Liam has focused on a solo career, Noel started a new band, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds.
Both have performed at Glastonbury Festival in recent years – a setting often touted by fans as the perfect place for a surprise Oasis reunion.
Of course, fans have reacted…
Here are a few of the best tweets from people who are now desperate for Liam to pick up the phone:
‘Please give the fans what they want LG’
‘GIVE HIM A CALL’
‘Blood is thicker than water Liam x’
‘The things I would do to get a ticket to an Oasis reunion can not be said on here.’
Chelsea football boss Thomas Tuchel has insisted he has “no ill feeling” towards Tottenham manager Antonio Conte after the pair were both given red cards following fiery on-field exchanges.
The two bosses twice clashed, first on the touchline, then on the field at the final whistle, in what was a highly-charged London derby at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
Chelsea had taken the lead, but a controversial equaliser from Spurs’ Piere-Emile Hojbjerg led to tensions and tempers spilling over.
Blues’ boss Tuchel remonstrated with fourth official Peter Bankes as it became clear Hojbjerg’s effort would stand.
Former Chelsea manager Conte raced in – and the pair briefly touched heads, as members from both benches piled in to a messy melee.
Tuchel, his assistant Zsolt Low, and Conte were all booked, but after all the fuss, the goal was awarded.
Then, after Reece James put Chelsea back in front in the 77th minute, Tuchel set off on a sprint past Conte and down the touchline, clenching his fist in delight.
But it didn’t end there.
At the final whistle – after the strained game ended in a 2-2 draw thanks to a Harry Kane extra time goal for Spurs – the mangers met on the field for the customary handshake… and another tussle ensued, resulting in a second booking and a red card for both.
“I thought when we shake hands you looked in each other eyes, but Antonio had a different opinion,” Tuchel said of the post-match clash with Conte.
“He was happy when they equalised, and it got a bit heated, but nothing big… I think it was not necessary, but a lot of things were not necessary.
“It was something of nothing. I have no ill feeling,” he told Sky News Radio.
Conte put the emotions down to passion.
“I think it is not important, this is not important,” he said.
“It can happen when the passion is high in both sides.”
He said he would “pay more attention” next time when he shakes hands with his German counterpart.
“I’ll stay on my bench, he’ll stay on his bench. No problem about this,” he added.
Social media enjoyed the two managers’ tête-à-tête.
Spurs striker and England star Harry Kane described the encounter as “spicy” on his Twitter feed.
The managers are both now facing one-match touchline bans.