Davos/London | The UK and US were on a collision course over digital tax after Washington threatened retaliatory tariffs if the British government did not back down on plans to impose the levy from April.

A spokesperson for prime minister Boris Johnson said the British government, which is set to start talks with Washington over a post-Brexit trade deal next month, would go ahead with plans to introduce the new tax. The US claims the levy unfairly discriminates against technology companies including Google and Amazon.