Donald Trump says British People “like him a lot” as he prepares for UK visit

He was speaking following a Nato summit in Brussels

Donald Trump has claimed that his stance on immigration means people in the UK "like him a lot", ahead of his first official visit to the UK. Speaking at a press conference following a Nato summit in Brussels, the president said he thought the vote for Brexit was primarily due to concerns about immigration. President Trump will land in the UK tomorrow with critics claiming he is intentionally avoiding London due to the number of large-scale protests that are planned. When asked about the demonstrations, he replied: “It’s fine. They like me a lot in the UK. I think they agree with me on immigration.” He added: “I think that’s why Brexit happened.” Later, asked about Theresa May’s plan for leaving the EU, he echoed the British Prime Minister’s own words that “Brexit should mean Brexit”. He said: “The people voted to break it up so I would imagine that’s what they would do, but maybe they’re taking a different route – I don’t know if that is what they voted for.” Adding that it seemed as if the UK was “getting at least partially involved back with the European Union”. “I’d like to see them be able to work it out so it could go quickly,” he said. A number of protests have been planned for the president’s stay in the country, with the largest march due to be held in London on Friday. It was announced last week that Trump will spend just one night in the capital. Many will see his avoidance of London as proof he is trying to keep away from dissent, however, the US ambassador to the UK, Woody Johnson, denied this. “No, the president is not avoiding anything,” he told a press briefing last week. “The president is merely trying to get as impactful a trip as he can get in a 24-hour period.” Trump will be using London as a base during his visit, Johnson added.