Former Mayor of London Boris Johnson has engaged in a battle of words with his predecessor over the visit of Donald Trump to the UK – calling the Labour politician a “puffed up pompous popinjay”.
Sadiq Khan said President Trump’s decision to cancel his planned trip to the UK shows he “got the message” from Londoners who “find his policies and actions the polar opposite of our city’s values”.
Speaking shortly after Trump’s announcement that he wouldn’t be opening the new US embassy in London he added that he hopes Trump will also revisit “the pursuit of his divisive agenda”.
But the comments have been met with scorn from the now Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson.
Many Londoners have made it clear that Donald Trump is not welcome here while he is pursuing such a divisive agenda. It seems he’s finally got that message. pic.twitter.com/YD0ZHuWtr3
— Sadiq Khan (@SadiqKhan) January 12, 2018
He said: “The US is the biggest single investor in the UK – yet Khan & Corbyn seem determined to put this crucial relationship at risk. We will not allow US-UK relations to be endangered by some puffed up pompous popinjay in City Hall.”
The US is the biggest single investor in the UK – yet Khan & Corbyn seem determined to put this crucial relationship at risk. We will not allow US-UK relations to be endangered by some puffed up pompous popinjay in City Hall.
— Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) January 12, 2018
Later, a Number 10 source confirmed that Mr Johnson had been speaking for the Government, telling The Independent: “Boris expresses himself in his own inimitable way – but we agree that any risk to the crucial US-UK relationship is not in our country’s best interest.”
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