NHS ‘never’ on the table for trade deal, Downing Street says

The NHS will “never be on the table” for a trade deal, Downing Street has said.

Number 10 said on Friday that the Government will “only ever sign” agreements that “align” with the UK’s interests.

It comes after President Donald Trump said that the UK and the US could end up with a “real trade deal” that would make tariffs unnecessary.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting had earlier said that the NHS is “not up for grabs”, but suggested the UK has a “large and diverse patient population” that could offer a lot in terms of research.

After a meeting at the White House with Sir Keir Starmer on Thursday, the US president said he thinks “there’s a very good chance that in the case of these two great, friendly countries, I think we could very well end up with a real trade deal where the tariffs wouldn’t be necessary”.

Advanced technology

Sir Keir said the two leaders had decided “to begin work on a new economic deal with advanced technology at its core”.

It is understood the proposed agreement is likely to focus on technology, rather than being an all-encompassing free trade deal.

Sir Keir said at a joint press conference alongside Mr Trump: “Our two nations together shaped the great technological innovations of the last century.

“We have a chance now to do the same for the 21st century.”

Asked whether the NHS would be involved in any deal, a Downing Street spokesman said on Friday: “The Government’s clear that we’ll only ever sign trade agreements which align with the UK national interest and the NHS will never be on the table for any trade agreement.”

Speaking to Sky News earlier on Friday, Mr Streeting said: “The NHS is not up for grabs and is 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.”

Research

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Mr Streeting reiterated that the NHS “isn’t on the table” in terms of trade discussions, but said the UK has a “large and diverse patient population” that could offer a lot in terms of research.

He said: “We’ve always been clear that the NHS isn’t on the table, but if I think about the ingredients that are key to the NHS’s success, particularly 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.”

Asked what the UK could contribute, he said: “We’ve got great science, we’ve got a large and diverse patient population that in terms of medical research and clinical trials has a lot to offer the world.”

Pushed on whether that meant data, Mr Streeting added: “Access to our patients and to our National Health Service and its footprint I think is valuable.

“We’re not in the business of selling off people’s data, but in terms of data access, absolutely the thing that the NHS can offer and the thing that the NHS can get in return is being a really strong partner for clinical trials.

“Providing access to a diverse patient cohort – so in terms of clinical trials – that means we can push the boundaries of our understanding of medical science and research absolutely critical for the development of new treatments and technologies.”