London Playbook PM: The Reeves meme

 

London Playbook PM: The Reeves meme

By Emilio Casalicchio

19 mins read

April 25, 2025 6:14 pm CET

https://www.politico.eu/newsletter/london-playbook/london-playbook-pm-the-reeves-meme/

 

London Playbook

By EMILIO CASALICCHIO

with NOAH KEATE

 

FRIDAY CHEAT SHEET

— Rachel Reeves is wrapping up a chat with her U.S. counterpart after committing a possible diplomatic faux pas.

 

— Donald Trump said Crimea will not be returned to Ukraine.

 

— Kemi Badenoch said Tories chattering about pacts with Reform is not a good look to voters.

 

— Ed Miliband did the tough guy routine again as he closed Britain’s big energy summit.

 

— The new boss of the football regulator was named and it sparked a political row.

 

TOP OF THE NEWSLIST

THE REEVES MEME: Chancellor Rachel Reeves should be finishing up her meeting with U.S. counterpart Scott Bessent around now — before which she trotted out the distracted boyfriend meme.

 

How not to treat a host: Despite being in the U.S. to talk trade, Reeves told the BBC’s Faisal Islam the British trading relationship with the EU is, to be quite honest Faisal, a bigger deal than importing a few crates of Lucky Charms or whatever from the States.

 

The quote: “I understand why there’s so much focus on our trading relationship with the U.S. but actually our trading relationship with Europe is arguably even more important, because they’re our nearest neighbors and trading partners,” she told the Beeb on a glorious wander around the famous D.C. Mall.

 

To be fair … Reeves is spitting hard truths. Although the ONS confirmed this morning that 9.7 percent of U.K. goods imports come from the U.S. and 16.2 percent of U.K. goods exports go there, the EU accounts for 55 percent of U.K. goods imports and 48 percent of U.K. goods exports. It’s a similar picture on services, with 19.5 percent of U.K. service imports coming from the U.S. and 27 percent of service exports heading there, compared with 45 percent and 36 percent for the EU.

 

There’s no competition: Yes, the U.S. is our “biggest single trading partner” as some on the right like to point out, but the EU is a unified bloc of trade partners that happens to be 50 miles across the Channel rather than thousands of miles across the Atlantic. The EU is indeed therefore a far more important trading partner.

 

Nevertheless: Pointing that out hours before hoping to make trade progress with MAGA-land — while it rubs our face in the mud with crippling tariffs on cars and steel and … everything — might not be advisable. It’s also worth bearing in mind that the U.S. is the biggest U.K. export market for cars.

 

Shock response: Downing Street did not want to go there when reporters asked at the noon lobby briefing whether Reeves was correct. A spokesperson for the PM said despite it being a fact the EU is our biggest trading partner, the suggestion of opting between the U.S. or EU is a “false choice.”

 

What is not false … is that the EU is also clearly proving much easier to deal with than the White House. German ambo to London Miguel Berger told Radio 4 this morning he is “really optimistic” about the possible youth visa scheme with the bloc the government doesn’t want to talk about yet. The government isn’t sure exactly what it would be willing to stomach at the moment — but it does accept some form of scheme would be pro-growth.

 

Bessent not to talk about it: Reeves will be eager to assure Bessent an EU visa scheme would not amount to freedom of movement. Cabinet minister Steve Reed insisted to Times Radio this morning: “There won’t be any return to freedom of movement.”

 

Also Bessent not to talk about: Reeves might as well avoid chatting about Ukraine, too, after Donald Trump once more said the quiet part out loud. He told Time Crimea “will stay with Russia” because Vladimir Putin has had his subs there for a while and lots of people there speak Russian. He said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy “understands” he won’t be getting the region back.

 

Reeves might want to leave this all for … Keir Starmer. Who has departed Britain for the Pope’s funeral in Rome and could end up in convo with the Orange One there. Trump is on route. The PM’s spokesperson said he did not recognize the report in the Times that the “coalition of the willing” plan to send troops to Ukraine is hitting the buffers — and maintained that all options remain on the table. All options also depend on Trump of course.

 

It comes as … Trump’s Ukraine point-man Steve Witkoff met Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin. Arrival footage here. And a senior Russian military officer was killed in a car explosion in the Moscow region.

 

Speaking of wars: Starmer spoke to Indian PM Narendra Modi this morning to note he was “horrified” at the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir, which saw 26 people killed. The Pakistanis are warning it could lead to war. Gulp.

 

Still to come: Reeves has a chat with Trump’s National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett at 7.45 p.m. before she heads home. Her X feed has been a roll call of meeting snaps.