Sir Keir Starmer said he understands what Donald Trump cares about, insisting the pair have built a relationship on shared family values.
The prime minister admitted that while they may have “different political backgrounds”, he and Mr Trump have built a “good personal relationship” which he said helped land the trade deal with the US.
Sir Keir revealed that the US president reached out to offer his condolences after the death of his younger brother, Nick Starmer, on Boxing Day last year.
“We talked about my brother, and he was asking about him”, the prime minister said. “For both of us, we really care about family and there’s a point of connection there.”
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Political Thinking, Sir Keir said he first spoke to Mr Trump in his role as prime minister after he was shot at a rally in July, before he was elected as president.
He said. “I think I do understand what anchors the president, what he really cares about. But also, we have a good personal relationship.
“The first time I ever spoke to him was when I picked up the phone to him after he had been shot when he was at rally before he became president.
“And that was a phone call, really, to ask him how it was, and in particular, I wanted to know how it impacted his family.”
The prime minister also denied that this week’s humiliating climbdown on welfare came because he had been overly focused on foreign affairs.
He said he cannot “pretend… that wasn’t a tough day”, and stressed the welfare system “isn’t working for the people that matter to me”.
But the PM also insisted the government would “come through this stronger”.
Sir Keir was forced to abandon a key plank of his controversial benefit cuts on Tuesday in order to get them through parliament in the face of a mass rebellion of Labour MPs.
While his welfare reform bill passed its second reading by 335 votes to 260 – a majority of 75 – the prime minister still suffered the largest rebellion of his premiership so far, with 49 Labour MPs voting to reject the legislation.
It came after a last-ditch announcement that plans to restrict eligibility for personal independence payments (PIP) – which had been the central pillar of the government’s reforms – were being dropped in a humiliating climb down for the prime minister.
The rebellion was a sign of growing disaffection among Labour MPs, with mounting concern over Sir Keir’s leadership and the direction of the government.
The prime minister said he will always “carry the can” as leader, adding he would “always take responsibility” when asked questions.
“When things go well… the leader gets the plaudits, but when things don’t go well, it is really important that the leader carries the can – and that’s what I will always do,” he said.
