Brits are ‘are questioning the US as a trusted ally’

As Trump wages a trade war on the global economy, the British public’s allyship with the US wanes. In fact, Brits see themselves as having more in common with France, according to Opinium’s latest poll – with France having a 5% lead on the metric.

Despite their longstanding relationship, the attitude of the public towards the US is beginning to wobble.

A third (34%) see the US as a threat, which is split equally against the third (35%) who see the country as an ally. Compared to November 2024, the time of Trump’s re-election, the number who see the US as a threat has doubled.

However, the British public’s souring towards the US may not extend much further than Trump – half (48%) think he doesn’t represent what most Americans think, up from a third (33%) in January.

Over two in five (43%) see him as a strong leader, and half (48%) think he’s able to get things done, they just think that those things are mostly bad.

Tariff troubles

Donald Trump’s trade tariffs dominated the news over the last week. However, despite Trump’s ambitions to boost the US economy, almost three-in-five (57%) Brits feel that the US will be worse off as a result.

Similarly, three-in-five (59%) feel that the trade war between the US and China will have a negative impact on both countries. However, the British public are more likely to believe the trade war has played to China’s benefit: one in ten (10%) think it is good for China and bad for the USA, whilst only one in twenty (5%) think it is good for the USA and bad for China.

Moving focus to Europe, the public don’t see the differential tariffs with the EU as a Brexit benefit: two in five (41%) think they bad for both markets, compared to only one in ten (11%) who think they are good for the UK and bad for the European Union.

Starmer’s ratings steady

The tariffs imposed by the US have provided the UK government with a challenge to protect its own economy. The sentiment towards Keir Starmer’s handling on the situation is mixed: a quarter (25%) approve of how Keir Starmer has handled the UK’s response to the tariffs on imports from Britain, but a similar proportion disapprove (25%), and 27% neither approve nor disapprove.

Keir Starmer’s approval also shows no signs of improvement, moving from -32% to -30%. Other leaders also saw only minor changes.

James Crouch, head of public affairs and policy at Opinium, said, “The British public are questioning the US as a trusted ally like never before. For now, they are blaming an erratic Donald Trump, not a permanent shift in American politics and values to the detriment of Britain and her allies.

“But at this rate, it would be surprising if that residual goodwill survives another four years.”