Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said that he is “fed up” with Donald Trump, as he blamed the American president for pushing up the cost of living.
Starmer criticised Trump’s actions which led to pushing up energy bills for households and businesses, while he compared the US-Israeli war in Iran to Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
According to Starmer, the UK needed more “energy independence” to reduce its exposure to international markets.
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His statements come as petrol prices have soared while energy bills later this year are expected to increase, due to the US-Israeli war with Iran.
Starmer linked the effects of the US military offensive in the Middle East to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which pushed up energy bills in 2022, as he directly accused Trump of impacting the cost of living of British families.
“I’m fed up with the fact that families across the country see their bills go up and down on energy, businesses’ bills go up and down on energy because of the actions of Putin or Trump across the world and saying to families across the country, saying to businesses across the country, ‘We’ve just got to put up with being on the international market’”, Starmer told ITV.
“We need energy independence, and the only way to get energy independence is to go even more quickly to renewables because we’re not going to get it on the international market”, the prime minister said.
Starmer also added that the Israeli strikes on Lebanon after the US-Iran ceasefire deal were wrong and should stop.
Criticising Trump’s threat to obliterate civilisation in Iran, Starmer said it was language that he would personally never use.
Asked whether Israel was “wrong to be attacking in Lebanon now”, Starmer replied: “Yes, that shouldn’t be happening. That should stop – that’s my strong view – and therefore, the question isn’t a technical one of whether it’s a breach of the agreement or not.”
“The [question] is actually a matter of principles as far as I am concerned and, in a sense, my argument would be it should be included in a ceasefire and that’s the important part of the overall approach.”
Tensions between Trump and Starmer have grown ever since the US president started his war with Iran, as the PM’s refusal to follow the US into another Middle East conflict hasn’t left Trump best pleased.
Recently, Trump impersonated Starmer as he recounted saying he had to ask the UK to send “two old broken-down aircraft carriers” to the Middle East, in a video from a private Easter White House lunch.
While in his latest jibe aimed at the British prime minister, Trump likened Starmer to Neville Chamberlain.