Starmer calls for ‘joint effort’ with business on Iran war economic impact
Business chiefs have been urged to help address the economic impact of the Iran war as Sir Keir Starmer admitted the Government could not shoulder all the burden.
Bosses from energy, shipping and banking firms were called in to Downing Street for talks as Donald Trump threatened to escalate the Middle East conflict. The Downing Street discussions focused on Iran’s ongoing blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, which has disrupted a vital shipping route for the oil and gas industry along with supplies of other products such as fertiliser. The crisis has pushed up prices and caused economic uncertainty around the world. The Prime Minister told the executives gathered in Downing Street it must be a “joint effort” to tackle the impact of the war, saying “the Government can’t do it on its own”. The talks in Downing Street involved representatives from firms including Shell and BP, shipping giant Maersk, maritime insurance specialist Lloyd’s of London and banks HSBC and Goldman Sachs. The executives were updated on the military situation in the region from Major General Richard Cantrill, the UK’s maritime operations commander. Sir Keir said “we are working on a viable plan for the Strait of Hormuz” with allies. He said: “It’s not our war, but it is our duty to protect British citizens. “Particularly their concern will be not just the escalation of the war, but this sense that it’s going to hit them and their families and their households. “And I think probably uppermost in their minds at the moment is energy bills, petrol and also food prices.” Setting out the joint effort required, he told the executives: “The Government can’t do it on its own. You can’t do it on your own. “We’re going to have to work together on this.” US president Mr Trump threatened the destruction of Iran’s energy infrastructure and possibly its water desalination plants unless the strait is “open for business”. The Prime Minister has pleaded for de-escalation in the Middle East, but Mr Trump has sent thousands of extra US troops and raised the prospect of military action to seize Iran’s Kharg Island, a crucial facility for oil exports. In a post on his Truth Social platform, Mr Trump said the US had made “great progress” in discussions with a “more reasonable” Iranian regime to end the war triggered by the US-Israeli strikes. He wrote: “Great progress has been made but, if for any reason a deal is not shortly reached, which it probably will be, and if the Hormuz Strait is not immediately ‘open for business’, we will conclude our lovely ‘stay’ in Iran by blowing up and completely obliterating all of their electric generating plants, oil wells and Kharg Island (and possibly all desalinisation plants!), which we have purposefully not yet ‘touched’.” The talks at No 10 will by a Cobra meeting on Tuesday, where senior ministers will discuss the ongoing economic hit caused by the war. The cost of oil benchmark Brent crude lifted more than 3% to 117 dollars a barrel at one stage in Monday morning trading, reaching levels not seen since 2022. The impact of the ongoing Strait of Hormuz blockade was compounded by Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen launching strikes against Israel, raising the possibility of attacks on Red Sea shipping. Diesel prices have reached their most expensive level since December 2022, with the average price of a litre of the fuel at UK forecourts on Monday hitting 181.2p according to RAC analysis. That represents a 27% increase from 142.4p on February 28, the day the war in the Middle East began. Average petrol prices have reached 152.0p per litre, a rise of 14% from 132.8p over the same period. Meanwhile, Chancellor Rachel Reeves joined a virtual meeting of G7 finance and energy ministers and central bank governors, along with Energy Secretary Ed Miliband. The G7 – the UK, US, Germany, France, Italy, Canada and Japan along with the European Union – were considering ways to respond to the economic hit from the war. Defence Secretary John Healey is in the Middle East to speak to the UK’s allies in the Gulf.
Published: by Radio NewsHub