EXCLUSIVE: Would UK’s tariff have been zero without EU legacy tariffs?
US Administration highlights UK’s EU-inherited tariffs, not repealed, BUT EVEN SO:
It’s “Brexit, Baby! Brexit!” – Independence gifts UK a major competitive advantage over EU
Montage © Facts4EU.Org 2025
Half the rate (10%) of EU’s tariffs (20%), some major UK exports exempted
Facts4EU provides an analysis you are less likely to see on the BBC, Sky News, and others. In the Rose Garden yesterday, President Trump did not attempt to sweeten the pill for the EU:
"They're [the EU] ripping us off. It's so sad to see. It's so pathetic."
With that, a 20% tariff was imposed on all EU goods, except some products where it is even higher.
As readers will know, the UK scored a significant victory yesterday as the US President applied only a 10% tariff on most British goods, and even went on to exempt key areas such as the large pharmaceutical industry. There are reasons why it was not zero, as we outline below.
Conversely, the EU was hit with a 20% ‘Retaliatory Tariff’, second only on President Trump’s list he held up showing the EU just below China amongst major trading partners. As he went down the list, the US President commented on each country, mostly negatively, and then came to the UK at which point his tone changed and he merely said:
“United Kingdom, 10%, so we'll go 10%.”
10% gifts major competitive advantage to UK over EU, but it could have been even better
Many British media outlets such as the BBC and Sky News are focusing on the potential negative consequences of the UK’s low 10% tariff rate. Meanwhile, Facts4EU presents some very interesting information uncovered during our research, which we have not seen elsewhere.
Brexit Facts4EU.Org Summary
The US Trade Representative on trade with the UK
The following comes from an official US Administration document, released on Monday (31 Mar 2025), which highlights the UK’s tariffs inherited from the EU and not repealed by post-Brexit governments.
This document was prepared by the Office of US Trade Representative specifically for this review of new tariffs. It discusses the largest export markets for the United States, covering nearly 60 trading partners and looks at all forms of trade barriers.
Logo © US government
The EU’s section in this document is 34 pages long outlining a wide variety of trade practices the US considers to be unreasonable.
By contrast, the section on the UK is just 5 pages long. Interestingly, it singles out some positives for the UK, before then saying:
“The UK has some high tariffs that affect U.S. exports, such as rates of up to 25.0% for some fish and seafood products, 10.0% for trucks, 10.0% for passenger vehicles, and up to 6.5% for certain mineral or chemical fertilizers.”
These are all tariffs inherited from being a member of the EU and not repealed since the UK became independent.
The US administration does not say so, but this passage in a document from the US official trade department informing the President’s decision does beg the question of what that decision on the UK would have been if the UK government had repealed these inherited EU tariffs.
More worryingly, the document singles out areas of concern regarding the UK's continued alignment with EU policies
“Following withdrawal from the EU, the UK transposed existing EU technical regulations into UK law in 2021, thus creating close initial alignment between UK and EU technical regulations and requirements.
“Several specific trade concerns outlined in the technical barriers to trade (TBT) section of the EU Chapter in this National Trade Estimate Report therefore remain with respect to the UK. Additional divergences between the two regimes will likely continue because changes to some EU regulations have not been, or will not be, automatically reflected in the UK regulatory regime (with the exception of Northern Ireland under the Windsor Framework) and vice versa.”
It must therefore be concluded that had the UK government diverged fully from the EU trade regime as it should have done following Brexit, the chances of the UK being exempted from 'Retaliatory Tariffs' completely would have been even higher.
Scroll down for the video of the President - and EU reaction
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Watch President Trump's speech in full, courtesy of the White House
The response from Brussels was bitter
The response from Brussels came from EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in a statement which did not appear to make any attempt to sound conciliatory. It mostly aimed at deflecting attention away from the fact that the EU now faces one of the highest tariffs in the world for a major trading partner. A great deal of the statement talked about the tariffs on other countries instead. (She somehow forgot to mention Brexit Britain, on one-half of the EU’s new tariff.)
“President Trump's announcement of universal tariffs on the whole world, including the EU, is a major blow to the world economy…. The global economy will massively suffer…. The consequences will be dire for millions of people around the globe…. Also for the most vulnerable countries, which are now subject to some of the highest US tariffs…. The tariffs will also hurt consumers around the world.”
“It will be felt immediately. Millions of [EU] citizens will face higher grocery bills. Medication will cost more as well as transportation. Inflation will go up…. All businesses – big and small – will suffer from day one. From greater uncertainty to the disruption of supply chains to burdensome bureaucracy…. And what is more, there seems to be no order in the disorder.”
In the UK there has been a great deal of comment. We have singled out this statement as it mentions the Brexit effect.
“The silver lining is that Brexit - which Labour ministers voted against no less than 48 times - means that we face far lower tariffs than the EU: a Brexit dividend that will have protected thousands of British jobs and businesses.”
- Andrew Griffith MP, shadow trade secretary, 02 Apr 2025
Observations
There can be no doubt that Brexit has delivered another major bonus for the country, as the events of yesterday evening show. President Trump possibly felt the UK's tariff, half that of the EU, sent a message. We can only speculate what the result might have been if post-Brexit governments had acted to reduce or eliminate the high tariffs which the UK was forced to follow as a Member.
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[ Sources: The White House | US Trade Representative | EU Commission ] Politicians and journalists can contact us for details, as ever.
Brexit Facts4EU.Org, Thurs 03 Apr 2025
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