Starmer to meet business leaders as Trump considers invading Iranian island

Bosses from energy, shipping and banking firms will meet Sir Keir Starmer as Donald Trump indicated the Iran war could escalate.

Oil prices spiked after the US president said he was considering a military operation to seize Iran’s Kharg Island, a crucial part of the country’s export infrastructure.

The Downing Street discussions are expected to focus on Iran’s ongoing blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, which has disrupted a vital shipping route for the oil and gas industry along with supplies of other products such as fertiliser.

The meeting will involve representatives from energy firms Shell and BP, shipping giant Maersk, maritime insurance specialist Lloyd’s of London and banks HSBC and Goldman Sachs.

The meeting will also hear an update on the situation in the region from Major General Richard Cantrill, the UK’s maritime operations commander.

It comes after the Royal Navy announced it was fitting the transport ship RFA Lyme Bay with minehunting drones, understood to be a move intended to provide ministers with options for securing the strait once the situation stabilises.

Downing Street said the aim of the meeting was to hear directly from businesses and discuss how the Government and private sector can work together in responding to the conflict.

The gathering comes after Mr Trump said he could “take the oil in Iran” or consider seizing control of Kharg Island, the country’s primary oil export hub.

“To be honest with you, my favourite thing is to take the oil in Iran but some stupid people back in the US say: ‘Why are you doing that?’ But they’re stupid people,” he told the Financial Times.

He added: “Maybe we take Kharg Island, maybe we don’t. We have a lot of options.”

However, Mr Trump acknowledged that doing so would require the US to remain in Iran “for a while”.

Ahead of his meeting with business chiefs, Sir Keir launched Labour’s campaign ahead of May’s local elections.

Speaking at the event in Wolverhampton he said: “People look at their screens and they’re worried when they see explosions, infrastructure blown up, the rhetoric that goes with it, worried about whether this is going to escalate even further.”

He added: “This is not our war and we are not going to get dragged into it.”

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, who was on the campaign trail in Scotland, said: “Sending troops to Kharg Island is an escalation. What I want to see is a de-escalation of this war.”

The conflict has left Britain facing the risk of higher inflation and lower growth.

Mrs Badenoch called for an expansion of North Sea drilling to boost the economy and energy security and scrapping VAT on household electric and gas bills to cut costs for consumers.

“The Government has a choice and they are making bad choices,” Mrs Badenoch told the Press Association.

Petrol prices have already risen sharply, while disruption to the global oil supply has seen some developing countries impose restrictions on fuel usage and sparked concern shortages could spread to the UK.

The cost of oil benchmark Brent crude lifted more than 3% to 117 US dollars a barrel at one stage in Monday morning trading, reaching levels not seen since 2022.

The impact of the ongoing Strait of Hormuz blockade was compounded by Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen launching strikes against Israel, raising the possibility of attacks on Red Sea shipping.

But London’s FTSE 100 Index opened the week on a firmer footing, edging 0.2% higher, up just over 22 points at 9989.56.

Most domestic energy users are protected by the price cap until the end of June but motorists are already being hit by high costs.

The average price difference between diesel and petrol at UK forecourts reached a record high, with a 26p per litre gap according to RAC Foundation analysis.

UK oil refineries are more geared towards producing petrol than diesel, so the country’s supply of the latter is more reliant on imports.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to join a virtual meeting of G7 finance and energy ministers and central bank governors, along with Energy Secretary Ed Miliband.

The G7 – the UK, US, Germany, France, Italy, Canada and Japan along with the European Union – will discuss ways to respond to the economic impacts of the war.