Care minister Stephen Kinnock has told Sky News the UK must be prepared for the eventuality that a trade deal with the US is not secured “immediately”, adding that it may take “some time to come”.
Friday 11 April 2025 08:57, UK
John Healey, the defence secretary, has announced new military aid for Ukraine, while co-chairing a meeting of 50 nations in Brussels.
As was widely trailed, the UK government has contributed £350m of equipment, which includes drones, anti-tank mines and radar systems – as well as funding to maintain and repair vehicles and equipment.
This is part of a wider £450m package of supplies being unveiled today.
Speaking to the Ukraine Defence Contract Group, Healey said: “2025 is the critical year for the war in Ukraine and this is the critical moment.
“A moment for our defence industries to step up, and they are. A moment for our armed forces to step up and, they are. A moment for our governments to step up, and we are.”
He added: “Today we are sending a signal to Russia and we are saying to Ukraine that we stand with you in the fight and we will stand with you in the peace.”
Healey is co-chairing the meeting with his German counterpart at NATO’s headquarters.
During the visit, he also urged members of the group to provide more military support to Kyiv.
The Conservatives say they “welcome” the surprisingly promising growth figures released by the ONS this morning, but add they take it “with a huge amount of reluctance”.
Robbie Moore, the shadow environment minister, is speaking to Sky’s Anna Jones and tells her that: “This is just for February.
“We know that the OBR gave a huge amount of caution as we head into this year, projecting a reduction in growth, and also, this is before all of those punitive tax increases kick in this month, like the jobs tax, the employer’s national insurance increases, minimum wage increases, business rates increases.”
He adds that business certainty is “very, very low at the moment based on those tax increases that have come in this month”.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has reacted to the news that the economy grew more than expected in February – with GDP rising by 0.5%.
She said: “The latest growth figures are encouraging signs that our Plan for Change is working. But we are not complacent.
“The world has changed. We must go further and faster to kickstart economic growth, provide security for working people and put more money in their pockets.”
Now, Stephen Kinnock, is asked about the government’s efforts to prevent Britain’s last operating blast furnaces from shutting in Scunthorpe – after the owners of the plant cancelled orders for supplies.
It is thought the plant could close as soon as next month without support, and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has called for the company, British Steel, to be nationalised while the government has previously said “all options” are on the table.
Speaking from his constituency in the industrial town of Port Talbot, Kinnock says the government is “focussed on getting a commcerical deal with Jingye, the owners of the Scunthorpe steelworks”.
He adds: “That commercial deal can put the steelworks on a solid footing to make sure it is competitive and viable.”
The care minister says the government is committed to getting a deal to support the workers at the plant.
“Steel is an absolutely vital, foundational industry for our economy, for our national security and this government is committed to building a strong steel industry”, he adds.
“But the right way forward is a commercial deal so that you have a business managing in a fast-moving market, a highly competitive market, that is what is best for the future of the steel industry.”
Next, Kinnock is asked if he is concerned after a senior official in the White House talked down chances of a trade deal that would see tariffs on the UK rescinded.
Kevin Hassett, a senior economic adviser to Mr Trump, said any deal that would persuade the president to go below that would need to be “extraordinary”.
But Kinnock responds that “things change all the time”.
He adds: “I think it is best for us to stay focussed on that we have that objective of getting a trade deal with the United States.”
The care minister says the UK must also be prepared for “the eventually that we don’t get it immediately, or it takes some time to come”.
He cites the government’s industrial strategy as allowing the UK economy to be able to “stand on our own two feet”.
Stephen Kinnock, the care minister, says news that the UK economy grew by 0.5% in February is “very encouraging”.
Speaking to Sky News’ Anna Jones, he says: “It’s very encouraging to see the figures because they are higher than expected.
“I think what we’re seeing is the dividend from a government that is stable, is focussed on our growth mission and is absolutely committed to supporting businesses across the country.
“So, that mixtures of supply side and demand side measures are really helping to build an economy that is fit for the future.”
Kinnock is then challenged on how the economic situation has changed significantly since February due to the imposition of tariffs by the US.
But he says the PM is”rebuilding our relations with our European partners and allies” and that Sir Keir Starmer is also “developing good connections” with US officials.
We’ve had reaction to those surprising figures showing the UK economy grew by an unexpectedly large 0.5% in February.
Shadow chancellor Mel Stride said the government has a “long way to go” and that “families deserve better”.
“Since coming to office, Labour’s choices have killed growth stone dead and there is still a long way to go to recover,” he said in a statement.
“At the emergency budget, the forecasts for growth, inflation and borrowing all moved in the wrong direction because of Labour’s decisions.
“Hardworking families deserve better than a government crowing about sluggish growth whilst they will be £3,500 worse off because of the jobs tax.”
New figures from the ONS show the UK economy grew by 0.5% in February.
Economists had widely expected the economy to grow by around 0.1% after it fell by 0.1% in January and by 0.4% in December.
But the new statistics show gross domestic product (GDP) rose by around 0.5%, widely beating expectations – and providing welcome good news for the government.
They also show the economy grew by 0.6% in the 3-months to February 2025.
The ONS says there was widespread growth across both services and manufacturing industries.
The watchdog says it has also revised its figures for January, saying there was no growth, instead of falling by 0.1% as they originally announced last month.
Sir Keir Starmer needs to reassure the public more over tariffs – and tell them Donald Trump is wrong, Harriet Harman has said.
Speaking to Beth Rigby on Sky News’ Electoral Dysfunction podcast, the Labour peer said ministers were avoiding the “elephant in the room, which is that Trump is wrong on this, we don’t agree with him”.
The US president placed 10% tariffs on all UK goods exported to the US, and while other countries were much worse hit, the FTSE 100 fell by about 1,000 after Mr Trump’s “liberation day” announcement last week.
👉 Click here to listen to Electoral Dysfunction on your podcast app 👈
It then kicked off its best day in five years on Thursday after Mr Trump decided to defer the worst of his tariffs for 90 days. Financial markets around the world reacted similarly.
Baroness Harman said there was no need for “gratuitous insults” but that the prime minister needed to “own the narrative” because there is “a danger” if the leader of the country is not saying what is actually happening.
Defence Secretary John Healey is due to co-chair a meeting of representatives from 50 countries, where new funding for Ukraine will be announced.
Healey will host the gathering of the catchy-named Ukraine Defence Contract Group in Brussels at the NATO Headquarters, along with his German counterpart, Boris Pistorius.
The headline new figure set to be announced is £450m in military support, of which £350m is coming from the UK.
That new cash will include funding for radar systems, anti-tank mines and hundreds of thousands of drones.
John Healey is expected to say: “The work of the Ukraine Defence Contract Group is vital to put Ukraine in the strongest possible position and pile pressure on Putin to help force him to end this terrible war.
“We cannot jeopardise peace by forgetting the war.”
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