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A minister did not deny the UK is now at \u201cthe whim\u201d of Donald Trump<\/a> after he gave a bizarre explanation as to why Britain is protected from his trade tariffs.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n The president declared the US-UK trade deal is finally \u201cdone\u201d overnight<\/a> in a major win for Keir Starmer.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n It means the levies on British cars entering the US market will drop from 25% to 10%.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n However, a deal on cutting import taxes on British steel and aluminium products from 25% to zero \u2013 compared to the global rate of 50% \u2013 is yet to be finalised.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Still, Trump told reporters at the G7 summit in Canada that the UK is \u201cvery well protected\u201d from his tariffs \u201cbecause I like them\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n On BBC Breakfast<\/a> this morning, presenter Sally Nugent<\/a> asked to transport secretary Heidi Alexander: \u201cIs this country now basically at the whim of the US president who could change his mind at any time about whether he likes us or not?\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Alexander took a deep breath \u2013 and dodged the question.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n She said: \u201cThe UK and the US have had a very strong trading relationship over many decades.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cI know my colleague Jonathan Reynolds who is the secretary of state for business and trade has very close working relationships with his counterparts in the department of commerce.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n She said the deal announced by the government overnight is \u201cabsolutely critical\u201d and that the UK steel industry will not be affected by the 50% tariffs imposed on the rest of the sector.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cWe are in this unique position, we are the only country in the world to have already got a trade agreement with the US… we are already working on getting that implemented,\u201d the cabinet minister said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Alexander also claimed the government is \u201cdetermined to go further\u201d on car manufacturing and aerospace.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Trump has a reputation for being particularly mercurial and sending contradictory messages.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The US president even accidentally called<\/a> the UK the European Union in front of Starmer while announcing the news on Monday.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n