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Donald Trump is visiting the prime minister’s country retreat Chequers for talks with Keir Starmer on the final day of his trip to the UK. The US president’s unprecedented second state visit has been accompanied by the announcement of American investments in the UK worth £150 billion. But talks between the two leaders will culminate in a news conference which could overshadow the carefully-planned pageantry designed to reinforce the special relationship. With the UK set to recognise a Palestinian state within days, divisions over Israel’s actions in Gaza could be exposed. The sacking of Peter Mandelson over his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein could also cast a shadow over the event, not least because Trump was also close to the paedophile financier, although the president fell out with him before his conviction in 2009. The extent of US support for Ukraine and the pressure Trump could apply to Vladimir Putin could also feature. And a promised deal to eliminate tariffs on imports to the US of UK steel has failed to materialise, although the 25% rate on British metal is half that of other countries. The prime minister will hope to keep the focus of the visit on an influx of American investment into the UK. Overnight, Starmer announced the prospect of some £150 billion flowing into the UK from big US companies such as Blackstone Inc and Palantir Technologies Inc. Chancellor Rachel Reeves will host a business reception in Downing Street for bosses at top US and UK financial firms, including BlackRock Inc, Barclays PLC and Blackstone in a bid to highlight transatlantic economic co-operation. As Starmer and Trump meet at Chequers, the prime minister’s estate in Buckinghamshire, they will sign a technology prosperity deal, touted as offering major investment by US tech firms in Britain, that will help to develop its AI capabilities. The prime minister will present the US leader with a bespoke ministerial red box styled to take back to the White House, as well as showing him items from the Churchill archives. The two men will also meet investors including bosses from GSK PLC, Microsoft Corp and Rolls-Royce while Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will also have face-to-face talks. Questions have, however, begun to arise over what US companies may want in return, with suggestions a tax on digital services, which largely impacts on US companies, could be reduced or eliminated. On Wednesday evening, Trump was the guest of honour at a lavish state banquet in Windsor Castle, hosted by the King. There he paid a heartfelt tribute to America’s relationship with the UK, saying the word ‘special does not begin to do it justice’, and claimed the nations were ‘two notes in one chord’. Among those at the banquet were the chiefs of major US firms, including big names from the tech world Sam Altman of OpenAI, Tim Cook of Apple Inc, and Jensen Huang, the founder of Nvidia Corp. Media mogul Rupert Murdoch was also present, despite being sued by the US president over a report linking him to Epstein. On Wednesday, thousands marched through London in protest against the US president’s state visit. YouGov polling suggests nearly half of the British population, 45%, believe it was wrong to invite Trump for the visit, while 30% think it was right to do so. By David Lynch, PA Political Correspondent Press Association: News source: PA Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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