All is not well at the highest levels of the UK government preparing for the descent of the Commander in Chief to UK soil next week. The Trump visit in chaos…
With the Mandelson story looking as though his resignation is inevitable, insiders involved in planning the visit in the US are venting about the timing of the crisis. “Losing an Ambassador days before or even during a State Visit is just terrible but is sadly now what we expect from the UK” said one official. Even British officials are nervous: the ceremonial side of the State Visit could be overshadowed by the Mandelson crisis, dragging the Royals into the controversy. Usually he would be sitting very near President Trump and HM King Charles at all the key events, and chaperoning him throughout the trip…
The dreadful assassination of Charlie Kirk has compounded planning difficulties, with an already live perception that the UK is in a free speech crisis likely to be magnified. Guido hears tributes to Kirk will be extensive from the US side during the visit, a political point that will make Starmer deeply uncomfortable…
It’s all a long way from the bonhomie displayed by Starmer during his Oval Office visit to Trump earlier this year. Who could have guessed things would go south…
Lee Anderson, speaking to The Sun’s Tom Scotson, reveals the wokest thing he’s ever done: “I once had a vegetarian thought, about becoming a vegetarian. That was quickly dismissed when I had a bacon sandwich…”