Donald Trump to be ‘denied access to Parliament’ on state visit

Trump will not receive the same honour as Barack Obama or Emmanuel Macron did before him

Trump's trip to the UK is deliberately timed for mid-September as there will be a parliamentary recess, giving the UK an excuse for not offering the President the speech, which Macron did earlier this week.

There have been whispers among Labour MPs that they could protest a joint address to Parliament by not showing up, resulting in potential embarrassment to Donald Trump.

However, Trump's predecessors, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama, had all previously received this honour.

There is a high likelihood that Trump will not be happy about this decision, as backlash is expected.

It was just last Tuesday (8 July) that the French President Emmanuel Macron gave his speech to Parliament and was applauded by Prime Minister Starmer alongside hundreds of peers and MPs.

British officials involved in the state visit running smoothly, are aware of Trump's desire to beat his presidential predecessors in the scale and opulence of the events.

Donald Trump will become the first modern elected leader to enjoy two UK state visits.

Controversy surrounding Trump's relationship with the UK is nothing new, as sensitivities concerning the US-UK relationship date back to 2016 when he first emerged as a candidate for the US presidency.

In that year, over half a million people signed a petition calling for the US President to be barred from entering the UK, which triggered a major debate in Parliament.

50 MPs got involved in the heated discussion where Trump was dubbed a 'buffoon', a 'racist demagogue', and a 'wazzock', per The Telegraph.

It is believed Trump will visit the UK briefly next month.

However, the Presidential visit is expected to be low-key and Downing Street is still seeing whether Sir Keir Starmer's schedule allows him to see the US president during his stay.

The more pertinent state visit is said to be in autumn, with the dates expected to be announced by the Palace later this month.

The House of Commons breaks for parliamentary recess on September 16, with the House of Lords following suit on September 18.

Additionally, the MPs are away from Westminster for the autumn party conferences season in September.