Shadow Armed Forces Minister Mark Francois has warned that Foreign Secretary David Lammy faces a “difficult position” following Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election.
Speaking on GB News, Francois highlighted the potential challenges ahead in UK-US relations.
“Donald Trump does have a reputation for taking sleight personally, so I think this does place the foreign secretary in a rather difficult position,” he said.
Lammy’s possible hiccup with the incoming US President comes after he described Trump as a “woman-hating Neo-Nazi sympathising sociopath” in 2018.
Francois emphasised that while UK-US links remain “very, very strong,” there could be complications ahead.
He told GB News: “I’m sure that those links will continue to the benefit of both of our nations and to the benefit of NATO.
“But I think because Labour sent all those activists over very publicly to campaign for the Democrats, and because he was threatening legal action over it, this could be a bumpy ride, at least to begin with,” he added.
Francois suggested the appointment of a new UK ambassador could face complications, stating: “It’s a decision for the Prime Minister, not for the president of the United States who our new ambassador will be, but it will be a decision for President Trump whether he talks to them or not.”
Mark Francois has warned the foreign secretary of hindering UK-US relations following Trump’s victory
GB News / PA
However, during today’s Prime Minister’s Questions, new Tory leader Kemi Badenoch took aim at Lammy over his previous remarks, and how they may impact the future UK-US relations.
She challenged Sir Keir Starmer to apologise for his Foreign Secretary’s comments about the president-elect, stating: “The prime minister and the foreign secretary met him [Trump] in September.
“Did the foreign secretary take that opportunity to apologise for making derogatory and scatological references, including, and I quote, ‘Trump is not only a woman-hating Neo-Nazi sympathising sociopath, he is also a profound threat to the international order’, and if he did not apologise, will the Prime Minister do so now on his behalf?”.
Starmer responded: “The Foreign Secretary and I did meet President-elect Trump just a few weeks ago for dinner for about a couple of hours, and we discussed a number of issues of global significance.”
In broader comments, Francois praised Kemi Badenoch’s approach to cabinet appointments.
“I think Kemi has been quite skilful in the way that she’s spread the appointments around,” he said, noting her success in uniting different party factions.
“A number of Jenrick’s people have got jobs, so have people that backed other candidates”, he added.
Francois also highlighted ongoing debates about defence spending, criticising Labour’s stance on military funding.
Trump won the US election following a tight battle with Kamala Harris for the Presidency
REUTERS
He expressed concern about the lack of a clear timetable for increasing defence spending to 2.5 per cent.
“Unless you put a date on it, you can’t actually draw that line, and you can’t plan the defence budget,” he explained.
He noted that the timing of reaching the 2.5 per cent target would significantly impact funding levels.
Francois told GB News that Lammy is in a ‘difficult position’ with the new US President
GB News
“If it was 2.5 per cent in ten years time, for argument’s sake, that’s a lot less money than if it’s 2.5 per cent within a couple of years,” he added.