This NHS is “not up for grabs” in trade negotiations with the US and the “hard yards are still ahead”, Wes Streeting has said.
The health secretary told Sky’s Anna Jones that the “warmth and enthusiasm” between Donald Trump and Sir Keir Starmer would “get the ball rolling” on striking a deal.
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But he stressed: “The hard yards are still ahead. And as we know about President Trump, he is a hardheaded businessman and he’s not a pushover.”
Asked if the UK could give ground on US access to the health service, Mr Streeting told Sky News: “The NHS is not up for grabs and it’s not on the table in the context of trade.
“But there are a number of areas where we can and should work together to deepen the trading relationship between our two countries.”
The cabinet minister did not say which areas could be looked at, but later told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that “in terms of life sciences and medical technology, there’s a lot that we’ve got to offer the United States and there’s a lot that we could get from the United States given our two countries’ strengths”.
He suggested NHS patients could be offered up in clinical trials, which in turn would mean British people “are at the front of the queue for those new treatments and technologies” and “that we get a good deal on price”.
Ministers are buoyed by the possibility of a UK-US trade deal after a positive meeting between Sir Keir and the US president in Washington on Thursday, which came as part of a European charm offensive launched to secure a lasting peace in Ukraine
During the meeting and a…
