UK 'not going to rush into a deal' with Trump: Finance minister

The United Kingdom isn’t going to “rush into a deal” with President Trump over tariffs, but it is working to reduce barriers, British Finance Minister Rachel Reeves says.

“We’re not going to rush a deal. We want to get the right deal that’s in our national interest and those talks are ongoing,” Reeves told reporters, according to Reuters.

She noted that “it’s clear” the Trump administration is wanting a deal with the U.K., so “those discussions continue.”

“I want to see tariff and non-tariff barriers reduced between the U.K. and the U.S., but also with other countries around the world,” she told the BBC.

Reeves noted that after Trump’s 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs expires, the one placed on Britain will be lower than other countries around the world, but she’s still not happy with that outcome.

“We are in extensive discussions at the moment with the United States about securing an economic agreement,” she said. “An agreement to reduce those tariff and non-tariff barriers.”

Last month, Reeves warned about the heightened tensions between the Trump administration and Britain. She said the U.K. didn’t want to escalate the trade wars, because it’s “no good for anyone.”

London Mayor Sadiq Khan echoed her remarks, and said a trade war between the allied countries would be “bad for all of us.”

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has put in effort to create a strong trade relationship with Trump ahead of the tariff implementation. Trump, at the time, had not yet said if he had planned to target the U.K. with tariffs.

Reeves, like many other global leaders, has hopes to strike a deal with the Trump administration over the import tariffs.

Earlier this week, The Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. wanted Britain to reduce its levies and other non-tariff barriers, including agricultural imports from the U.S.

Reeves is set to meet with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent this week to potentially hammer out the details of the deal.