There is no doubt that a trade war that hits jobs and living standards on both sides of the Atlantic is in nobody’s interest. So how do we stop Trump’s damaging actions and protect British businesses and livelihoods? The answer is not, as Starmer seems to suggest, to simply take his threat of tariffs lying down. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has suggested the EU use its “trade bazooka” and draw up punitive trade measures to hit back at Trump unless he drops his threatened tariffs. Britain needs its own trade bazooka: to stand up to the US president along with our European allies and force him to back down.