Bucks MPs have their say on Donald Trump's visit

Buckingham’s MP John Bercow has been outspoken about Donald Trump, previously vetoing the idea of him speaking in Parliament’s Westminster Hall, an honour which was given to his predecessor Barack Obama. These comments came shortly after Theresa May invited Mr Trump to visit the UK.

MP John Bercow said: ““The matter of state visits to the United Kingdom is for the Government and not for me.

“The relationship between the United Kingdom and the United States is valuable and long-standing.

“However, it is as well to remember that relationship is between countries, rather than with particular leaders.

“We have many shared values and the historic link between our two nations has been hugely important for intelligence gathering.

“But good friends should be able to speak freely to one another and I for one welcomed the cross-party condemnation of the US President’s decision to retweet extremist material.”

Aylesbury’s Mp David Lidington said: “The relationship between our country and the United States is vital to the prosperity and security of the United Kingdom.

“In part, it’s about economics: the US is the largest single destination for British overseas investment and is itself the biggest source of foreign investment in the U.K.

“It’s partly about defence and security: the British and American armed forces and intelligence agencies have the closest partnership of that between any two countries in the world.

“And at root it’s about history and values: standing together against both Nazi and Soviet aggression belief in individual liberty, free speech, democracy and constitutional government, commitment to an independent judiciary and the rule of law.

“That relationship has endured despite occasional rows and disagreements and through changes of government on both sides of the Atlantic.

“People here may agree or disagree with President Trump.

“I certainly disagree strongly with a number of things that he has said and done.

“But he was democratically elected by the American people. Any British government that is serious about defending the interests of our own country needs to build a constructive working relationship with whomever the American people have chosen.”

More than 1.8 million people signed a petition against his invitation and House of Commons Speaker John Bercow told MPs that Mr Trump should not be allowed to address Parliament.

London mayor Sadiq Khan also opposed the visit, saying he was “not sure it is appropriate for our government to roll out the red carpet” for such a controversial figure.

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