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Sir Keir Starmer has been warned against rolling out the red carpet for Donald Trump in the UK, as the prime minister attempts to build bridges with the president-elect.
Matt Wrack, general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union (FBU), told The Independent such a move would be “obscene”, saying Trump’s election is “disastrous for trade unions and the labour movement globally”.
“Trump is a far-right nationalist demagogue who has launched a racist and misogynistic ‘hate-fest’ in the US,” he added.
“A Trump presidency backed by reactionary billionaires will deliver nothing for workers. Trump’s administration will only serve the interests of the likes of Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and the super-rich.
“It would be obscene to roll out the red carpet at Westminster or Downing Street for a far-right figure like Trump.
“The FBU stands in solidarity with those who will oppose Trump’s attacks on working-class people in the years ahead.”
Meanwhile, former shadow attorney general Emily Thornberry warned Sir Keir against “holding Trump’s hand”.
The chair of the foreign affairs select committee told The Independent: “It is in Britain’s interests not to alienate the president-elect of the USA, but we must of course balance that with standing up for our values and beliefs. There is no need to hold his hand.”
Labour MP for Norwich South, Clive Lewis, said it is “important to also understand the difference between ‘cosying up’ and the pragmatism necessary in such statecraft”.
He told The Independent: “Trump is a democratically elected leader. I might not like that fact and I imagine many in government don’t either, but the reality is he’s now the chief exec of the worlds one super power, a trading partner and country with whom we have numerous military alliances.
“Will there be warmth in that relationship? Probably not as the ideological divide and his personal history prob make that difficult. But it still has to function. I think it important to also understand the difference between ‘cosying up’ and the pragmatism necessary in such statecraft.”
Sir Keir – who issued a statement welcoming the new president in the early hours of Wednesday morning – is keen to build bridges with Trump, after the Republican politician’s campaign filed a legal complaint about Labour activists supporting Kamala Harris’ campaign in the US.
His spokesperson said he offered the president-elect “hearty congratulations” during a phone call on Wednesday evening, but Sir Keir stopped short of inviting him to address parliament on his next visit to the UK.
At her first PMQs as leader of the opposition, Kemi Badenoch called for the prime minister to show that “he and his government can be more than student politicians” and ask the Commons speaker to extend the invitation to the president-elect, who swept to victory in the US election overnight.
While the prime minister said it is “absolutely crucial that we have a strong relationship” with the US, he dodged the requests.
During a phone call on Wednesday, Sir Keir told Trump he hopes the United Kingdom’s special relationship with the US continues to thrive for years to come.
The prime minister raised defence and the Middle East with the president-elect amid hostilities from Trump’s campaign team which had previously described Labour as “far left”.
A Downing Street spokesperson said the two politicians shared a “fond” phone call, with Sir Keir saying he looked forward to “working closely” with him across all areas of the special relationship.
Despite the prime minister’s charm offensive with the president-elect, Sir Keir has defended his foreign secretary David Lammy, who in the past called Donald Trump a “neo-Nazi sympathising sociopath”.
Mr Lammy will remain in his post until the next election, Downing Street said on Wednesday.
The vote of confidence came after the prime minister was asked to apologise for his frontbencher’s attack in an article written when he was a backbench MP in 2018.
Downing Street has been contacted for comment.
