Beaming
Nigel Farage becomes first British politician to meet Donald Trump
since election
Steven Swinford,
deputy political editor
13 NOVEMBER 2016 •
12:33AM
Nigel Farage
yesterday became the first British politician to meet Donald Trump
and tried to persuade him to return a bust of Sir Winston Churchill
to the Oval Office.
Mr Farage, who spent
an hour with the President elect, said Mr Trump expressed excitement
over the idea. The bust was removed by Barack Obama in 2008,
prompting a furious reaction from leading British politicians
including Boris Johnson, who is now Foreign Secretary.
Speaking of the
meeting, Mr. Farage said: "It was a great honour to spend time
with Donald Trump. He was relaxed, and full of good ideas. I'm
confident he will be a good President. His support for the U.S.-UK
relationship is very strong. This is a man with whom we can do
business".
"I was
especially pleased at his very positive reaction to the idea that Sir
Winston Churchill's bust should be put back in the Oval Office".
Mr Farage, who
became friends with Mr Trump during the election campaign and
appeared at a rally with him, met Mr Trump after visiting Trump
Tower.
It comes after The
Telegraph disclosed that Liam Fox, the International Trade Secretary,
planned to speak to Mr Farage about Mr Trump before flying to the US.
Downing Street subsequently barred him from doing so.
Mr Farage, the
interim Ukip leader, visited Mr Trump's headquarters in New York just
hours after telling Theresa May that she has to "mend fences"
with the President-elect.
In an appearance on
Fox News on Saturday, Mr Farage said that Mrs May's team has been
"quite rude" about Mr Trump. He is urging Mr Trump to meet
her and hopes that the relationship will be similar to that of
Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan.
Mr Farage said: "He
understands and recognises what our two great nations have done
together between us. And thank goodness we're coming to the end of an
American president who loathed us."
He said they ignored
criticism and their policies "made the world a better place".
Nigel Farage
describes Barack Obama as a 'loathsome creature' Play! 00:52
But he added: "Mrs
May's team have been quite rude about Trump so there are some fences
to be mended.
"I think he's
got to meet her ... We can have a sensible trade relationship, cut
tariffs, we're massive investors in each other's countries. There's a
bright future."
Earlier this week Mr
Farage told a radio show that Mr Trump should "schmooze"
Mrs May but "don't touch her for goodness sake".
A spokesman for Mr
Trump yesterday claimed that the pair had met and discussed "freedom
and winning". However Mr Trump's allies said that the report was
incorrect.
Boris
Johnson refuses to attend the urgent EU foreign ministers’ meeting
to discuss the impact of Donald Trump
Mr
Johnson has already told EU leaders to get over the ‘general doom
and gloom’ about Mr Trump’s election victory
Joe Watts Political
Editor
Boris Johnson has
snubbed an emergency EU foreign ministers’ meeting called to
discuss Donald Trump’s shock US election victory.
A Foreign Office
spokesman said that an “act of democracy” had taken place in the
US and that there was no need for EU ministers to organise an extra
meeting on top of the one already scheduled next week.
It comes after
Foreign Secretary Mr Johnson branded vocal European concern about the
US election result as a “whinge-o-rama”, while Ms May was
criticised by Labour for failing to “temper” her congratulations
to the President-elect.
A Foreign Office
spokesman said: “The Foreign Secretary will not attend the meeting
convened for Sunday. There is a regular Foreign Affairs Council
meeting on Monday where a range of issues can be discussed in the
normal way.
“We do not see the
need for an additional meeting on Sunday because the US election
timetable is long established. An act of democracy has taken place,
there is a transition period and we will work with the current and
future administrations to ensure the best outcomes for Britain.”
The move highlights
the widening gulf between London and the continent over how to
respond to the US election, after a senior German politician warned
Theresa May was “delusional” if she believed the incoming
Republican administration would give the UK a good trade deal.
German Social
Democrat Axel Schafer told The Times: “What changed is the
likelihood of a speedy and preferential trade deal between the UK and
the US.
“Even before
Tuesday the chances were rather low, now the hope for this kind of
deal seems delusional.”
Speaking in Belgrade
this week Mr Johnson called for a sense of proportion from EU
leaders in their reaction to Trump’s success.
He said: “I would
respectfully say to my beloved European friends and colleagues that
it’s time that we snapped out of the general doom and gloom about
the result of this election and collective whinge-o-rama that seems
to be going on in some places.
“He is, after all,
a deal maker. He wants to do a free trade deal with the UK.
“I believe that
this is a great opportunity for us in the UK to build on that
relationship with America that is of fundamental economic importance
for us, but also of great importance for stability and prosperity in
the world.”
Labour leader Jeremy
Corbyn today claimed that Ms May and Mr Trump were pursuing the same
divisive agenda towards immigrants, and took a swipe at the Prime
Minister for failing to be more critical of the President-elect.
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