The figure rises to £250 billion ($320 billion) if — as the Labour leader likes to put it — investments already pledged by British companies in the United States are also taken into account as a way of presenting the agreement as a two-way flow.
The funds for the so-called Tech Prosperity Deal come from several Wall Street’s heavyweights. Blackstone is committing around $120 billion over the next decade, in addition to the $13 billion already allocated for an AI data center under construction in northern English town of Blyth. Microsoft is also contributing some $30 billion, which is reportedly the largest single investment the Redmond-based company has ever made outside the U.S. According to Downing Street, the package should generate at least 7,600 skilled jobs in clean energy and the life sciences.
Starmer hailed the agreement as “proof of the country’s economic strength” and a signal that London is “open, ambitious and ready to lead.” Trump jokingly admitted that the deal “may have been more advantageous for the U.K. than for the U.S.” as he called the prime minister “a great negotiator.”
Trump also thanked Britons at length for the hospitality, describing Chequers as “an extraordinary place” and saying he would “never forget” the welcome offered by the Crown and Downing Street. He then revived the centuries-old notion of a “special relationship” across the Atlantic.
“The United States and the United Kingdom have done more good for this planet than any other pair of nations in history,” Trump said. “We have been friends, and we will always be friends.”
Asked by the BBC about Gaza, Starmer said that “the United Kingdom regards the imminent recognition of a Palestinian state as an indispensable step toward a two-state solution.” A mildly irritated Trump shook his head before responding that the issue “is one of our few disagreements.” He then voiced hope that “the fighting stops,” while accusing Hamas of using hostages as human shields.
On Ukraine, Trump repeated that “the war would never have broken out if I had been president,” and confessed to some disappointment with Putin. “I thought it would be the easiest conflict to resolve because of my personal relationship, but Putin really let me down.”
Even so, he hinted that “good news could be coming soon.” Starmer urged him to step up efforts: “We need to increase pressure on Moscow,” he said, describing Putin as “a leader who either feels emboldened or acts recklessly.”
As Starmer was laying out his plan for a mixed strategy combining renewables, oil and gas, Trump cut in to insist that “the right policy is drill, baby, drill” and dismissed wind power as “useless.” Nuclear did get the green light, as the two leaders signed a partnership to speed up the construction of new reactors and to provide reliable, low-carbon energy for the most energy-intensive sectors, including AI data centers.
Some minutes later, Trump suggested Starmer deploy the army to stop illegal immigration in the country. “Doesn’t matter how, just stop it,” he said. He went on to claim that “right now in the United States of America, illegal arrivals are zero.” Starmer responded quite diplomatically, stressing that “the problem is European,” and pointing to the 35,000 deportations carried out this year, “the highest number in many years.”
The Chequers summit was effectively the main political highlight of Trump’s overseas trip. On Wednesday in Windsor, it was instead all about pageantry and protocol, with King Charles III and Queen Camilla hosting a lavish welcome for the American guest. The military parade in full dress stayed within the castle’s heavily guarded walls, away from the protests.
The president laid a wreath at Queen Elizabeth II’s tomb, visited St. George’s Chapel and took part in a Lucullan banquet also attended by retired media mogul Rupert Murdoch, Apple’s Tim Cook, Nvidia’s Jensen Huang and OpenAI’s Sam Altman.
As diners were served watercress panna cotta and Norfolk chicken, some 5,000 protesters marched through London under the banner of the “Stop Trump Coalition.” Musician Billy Bragg led the crowd in singing “you fascists are bound to lose,” while comedian Nish Kumar threw an inflatable effigy of U.S. vice president JD Vance into the crowd. Police said at least two people were arrested in Windsor.
For Starmer, it was also an opportunity to put behind him some difficult weeks. The Labour leader saw his deputy prime minister, Angela Rayner, resign over a tax scandal, removed Britain’s ambassador to Washington, Peter Mandelson, for his ties to Jeffrey Epstein, and is increasingly under pressure from the far right, which questions his political strength — with vocal support from MAGA circles in the United States.
The echo of those criticisms apparently reached Chequers as well. Nick Clegg, the former deputy prime minister and ex-Meta executive, dismissed Trump’s investment pledges as “leftovers from Silicon Valley,” arguing that U.S. companies are building data centers everywhere and simply timed their announcements to coincide with the visit.