Trump taunts drive Starmer into EU’s arms

Donald Trump has heaped insults on Sir Keir Starmer in recent weeks over his stance on the Iran war. The US president labelled the UK prime minister “no Winston Churchill”, said Britain’s aircraft carriers were mere “toys” and told Britain to “go get your own oil” from the Gulf. So perhaps it’s unsurprising that the PM appears to be pivoting heavily towards the EU. Host Lucy Fisher unpicks the shift with colleagues Jim Pickard, Anna Gross and Robert Shrimsley. They also discuss how the Middle East conflict will play out in the upcoming local elections.Have a question for the panel? We’re planning a question and answer episode. Email your questions to [email protected] Lucy on X: @LOS_Fisher, and Bluesky: @lucyfisher.ft.com; Robert: @robertshrimsley and @robertshrimsley.bsky.social; Jim @PickardJE and @pickardje.bsky.social and Anna @AnnaSophieGross & @annasophiegross.bsky.socialWant more? Keir Starmer signals major UK pivot towards EU after Donald Trump’s tauntsLessons from history on how to survive a fuel crisisCracks appear in US-UK security co-operation after Trump-Starmer tensionsStarmer strikes upbeat note amid dismal polling ahead of May 7 local electionsPolitical drama reaches heart of UK’s nuclear deterrentHammering Farage-Trump links could suppress Reform’s poll leadSign up here for Stephen Bush's morning newsletter Inside Politics for straight-talking insight into the stories that matter, plus puns and tongue (mostly) in cheek. Get 30 days free.Presented by Lucy Fisher. Produced by Clare Williamson. Manuela Saragosa is the executive producer. Original music by Breen Turner, mix by Sean McGarrity. The broadcast engineers were Andrew Giorgiades and Petros Gioumpasis. Cheryl Brumley is the FT’s global head of Audio.Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.