Jeremy Corbyn to 'stand in solidarity' with anti-Trump protesters and deliver speech against president

Blower

Jeremy Corbyn will lead a demonstration against Donald Trump on Tuesday as he was accused of bringing “shame” on his party by trying to hijack the US president’s state visit.

The Labour leader, who harbours ambitions of being prime minister within months, promised to “stand in solidarity” with anti-Trump protestors after boycotting Monday night’s formal banquet for Mr Trump hosted by the Queen.

Thousands of protestors are expected to descend on London’s Trafalgar Square where Mr Corbyn will whip up the crowd with a speech about Mr Trump’s “misogyny and climate change”.

It follows an extraordinary spat between Mr Trump and Labour in which he described London Mayor Sadiq Khan as a “stone cold loser”.

Mr Trump also belittled those planning to protest with Mr Corbyn, saying he had not “seen any protests yet” but that “I’m sure the Fake News will be working hard to find them”.

At the start of a three-day State visit, the US president and his wife Melania were welcomed to Britain by the Queen after Mr Trump’s helicopter landed in the garden of Buckingham Palace.

Following lunch with the Queen and other members of the Royal family, the US president laid a wreath on the Grave of the Unknown Warrior at Westminster Abbey, returning later to the Palace for the banquet.

However, it was Mr Trump’s row with Labour that threatened to overshadow the visit. Even before the president touched down at Stansted Airport, he had tweeted insults from Air Force One about Mr Khan, who described him on Sunday as “a growing global threat” who used the language of “fascists”.

Mr Trump said Mr Khan had “by all accounts done a terrible job”, adding that he had been “foolishly nasty” to the leader of “the most important ally of the United Kingdom”.

He added: “He is a stone cold loser who should focus on crime in London, not me.” Comparing him to another of his many political enemies, the president added: “Khan reminds me very much of our very dumb and incompetent Mayor of NYC, [Bill] de Blasio, who has also done a terrible job - only half his height.”

Mr Khan hit back by repeating his claim that Mr Trump was “the most egregious example of a growing far-Right threat around the globe”.

He was joined by Mr Corbyn, who announced he would attend Tuesday’s anti-Trump demonstration and challenge his record on “climate change, misogyny and xenophobia” according to a Labour spokesman.

Anti Trump protesters outside Buckingham Palace in central London, Britain, 03 June 2019.
Anti Trump protesters outside Buckingham Palace today Credit: Rex

Emily Thornberry, the shadow foreign secretary, and Diane Abbott, the shadow home secretary, will be among the other Labour MPs taking part in the demonstration.

The Labour MP Kate Hoey accused Mr Corbyn of a “hysterical response” to Mr Trump, while the independent MP John Woodcock, a former Labour MP, said Mr Corbyn was “a disgrace", adding: "The UK's security partnership with America would be over the moment these jokers take office, God forbid."

Mr Trump’s State visit is timed to coincide with the 75th anniversary of D-Day, and Jeremy Hunt, the Foreign Secretary, said: “I am afraid this is just virtue signalling by the Labour Party.

“We have the President of the United States invited here by Her Majesty The Queen and it’s not about party politics, it’s about celebrating the close relationship where over the last 75 years we have seen unprecedented peace and prosperity.

“Shame on the Labour Party that they don’t recognise the big impact here.”

Mr Hunt pointed out that Mr Corbyn’s protest came as the Labour candidate in the Peterborough by-election stands accused of “liking” an anti-Semitic post on Facebook and Labour Party headquarters has been accused of turning a blind eye to misogynistic behaviour.

It is believed to be the first time a leader of the Opposition has attended a public rally attacking a US president during a State visit.

Mr Trump tweeted that his trip was “going really well” and that the “relationship with the United Kingdom is very strong”.

He also said a “big Trade Deal is possible once UK gets rid of the shackles. Already starting to talk!”

Mr Trump's speech at the banquet avoided politics, concentrating instead on the "bond between our nations" forged "forever" during the Second World War.

He made no reference to Brexit, but in a comment that could be interpreted as a message to the next prime minister he said that the sacrifice of Britons during the war "ensured that your destiny will always remain in your own hands".

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