Exclusive: Business secretary says he will not change trade rules due to EU pressure and denies UK will become a ‘back door’ for cheap imports

The business secretary has hit back at European demands for British tariffs on Chinese imports, saying the government will not change its trade rules because of pressure from Brussels.

Jonathan Reynolds warned that the government would not bow to calls from other countries for the UK to hit Chinese vehicles with import taxes, despite political pressure to align with the EU in exchange for deeper future economic ties.