By Ben Kerrigan-
UK MPs have accused President Donald Trump of fueling hate and have called for a planned state visit to be canceled.
The accusations come in the wake of three retweeted of videos posted by a British far-right group.
One Tory MP commented that the world would be “a better place” if Prime Minister Theresa May could persuade the US president to delete his Twitter account.
Uk prime minister, Theresa May has rightly and promptly condemned the tweets, adding that the president was ”wrong” to retweet them. Home Secretary Amber Rudd said she hoped Mrs May’s criticism “would have some impact on the president” – but rejected calls for his state visit to be called off. May’s criticism had an impact on Trump, but clearly a negative one which got the president defensive.
Rudd confirmed that an invitation “has been extended and accepted” but the “dates and the precise timings have yet to be decided”. The Home Secretary called for caution in the criticism of the U.S President , urging that his critics should remember the importance of the transatlantic alliance to Britain, adding intelligence sharing between the two countries had “undoubtedly saved British lives”.
“That is the big picture here, and I would urge people to remember that,” she added.
However, she repeated Downing Street’s condemnation of the US president, saying he had been “wrong” to share the posts by far-right group Britain First. She said the UK government would “not tolerate any groups who spread hate by demonising those of other faiths or ethnicities.
Budd may be right that the relationship between Britian and America is not compromised, but neither should the right for people to criticise Trump or anyone for that matter, be compromised. We live in a democratic society where freedom of expression must always be allowed to rein in rasing valid objections to the conduct of others.
he Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, who said it was “deeply disturbing” that Mr Trump had “chosen to amplify the voice of far-right extremists”.
GENUINE
Former Conservative minister Tim Loughton said if Twitter was “genuine in its commitment to fight hate crime online” it would delete the US president’s account.
Ms Rudd replied:
“I am sure that the chief executive of Twitter will have heard the interesting suggestions from (Mr Loughton) and we will leave it to them to decide what action to take.”
Several MPs called for the state visit to be cancelled, with former Labour cabinet minister Yvette Cooper saying Britain could not
“simply roll out a red carpet and give a platform for the President of the United States” to “sow discord in our communities”.
Mr Trump earlier hit back at Downing Street’s criticism of his tweets.
He told Prime Minister Theresa May to focus on “terrorism” in the UK after she criticised his sharing of far-right videos.
“Don’t focus on me, focus on the destructive radical Islamic terrorism that is taking place within the United Kingdom,” Mr Trump tweeted. However, this was a defensive stance by the president which has nothing to do with the political relationship between Britain and America.
The videos shared by Mr Trump, who has more than 40 million followers, were initially posted by Jayda Fransen, the deputy leader of Britain First, a group founded by former members of the far-right British National Party (BNP).
Ms Fransen, 31, has been charged in the UK with using “threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour” over speeches she made at a rally in Belfast.as has
DISTURBING
The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby said it was “deeply disturbing” that Mr Trump had “chosen to amplify the voice of far-right extremists
Communities Secretary Sajid Javid said Mr Trump had “endorsed the views of a vile, hate-filled racist organisation that hates me and people like me”, adding: “He is wrong and I refuse to let it go and say nothing.”
London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who has previously called for the “ill-judged” trip to be cancelled, said: “It beggars belief that the president of our closest ally doesn’t see that his support of this extremist group actively undermines the values of tolerance and diversity that makes Britain so great.
After already condemning Mr Trump’s actions on Wednesday, Brendan Cox – whose wife, MP Jo Cox, was murdered by a right-wing extremist who shouted “Britain first” before committing the act – told the US president to focus on problems in his own country.
Responding to a call by MP Peter Bone for the president to delete his account, she said:
“It’s interesting to note [Mr Bone’s] advice regarding Twitter accounts – I’m sure many of us might share his view.”
Former Conservative minister Tim Loughton said if Twitter was “genuine in its commitment to fight hate crime online” it would delete the US president’s account.
Ms Rudd replied:
“I am sure that the chief executive of Twitter will have heard the interesting suggestions from (Mr Loughton) and we will leave it to them to decide what action to take.”
Several MPs called for the state visit to be cancelled, with former Labour cabinet minister Yvette Cooper saying Britain could not “simply roll out a red carpet and give a platform for the President of the United States” to “sow discord in our communities”.
Brendan Cox – whose late wife, MP Jo Cox, was murdered by a right-wing extremist who first shouted “Britain first” before his horrific act told the US president to focus on problems in his own country.