White House downplays North American auto industry’s concerns about U.K. trade deal

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on Friday, May 9, 2025 in Washington. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Alex Brandon

WASHINGTON — The White House is downplaying the North American automobile industry’s claim that U.S. President Donald Trump’s new trade deal with the United Kingdom could make the sector less competitive.

The preliminary deal announced Thursday would drop tariffs on U.K. automobiles to 10 per cent for a quota of 100,000 vehicles.

The American Automotive Policy Council — which represents the Big Three automakers — says the deal makes it cheaper to import U.K. vehicles than to import cars from Canada or Mexico that are half-constructed of American parts.

Vehicles imported into the United States that comply with the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement on trade are being hit with 25 per cent duties on their non-American components.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt says Trump wants to put American automakers on the best “pedestal” to compete and says that if they build in the U.S., they’ll face no tariffs.

Leavitt also says the U.K. deal on automobiles won’t set a template for deals Trump’s administration negotiates with other countries.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 9, 2025.

Kelly Geraldine Malone, The Canadian Press