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Donald Trump’s planned state visit to the UK could happen “around June”, London police chief Sir Bernard Hogan Howe says.
The President’s potential visit to the UK, which will include an audience with the Queen, has provoked outrage after he signed an executive order temporarily banning people from seven Muslim-majority countries entering the US.
But it seems that planning for Mr Trump’s visit seems to be well underway as Sir Bernard told LBC’s Nick Ferrari that the London Metropolitan Police were expecting huge protests.
He said: “First of all, I think President Trump is coming around June, that’s the plan.
“At the moment, people are concerned there will be lots of protests. There have been protests already. We've had about 20,000 people about 10 days ago at Whitehall – all very peaceful.
“I’ve no doubt, as the days pass, we’ll make assessments on what's going to happen, so we can’t definitely say there will be huge amounts of problems.
“No doubt we’ll put a lot of officers out there and keep them safe and make sure everything goes well. If there is a few thousand officers, it’s likely to be quite a bit of money.”
Thousands marched on London last weekend as news of the ban – which also halted the US’s refugee programme – spread and reports emerged of people with valid visas and green cards already in transit when the order was signed being detained for hours at airport security.
The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued
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The organisers of the protest said the ban was “an appalling attack on human rights” and that they wanted to send a message to Ms May that Mr Trump “was not welcome here”.
Speaking in the House, Mr Bercow said he had been “strongly opposed” to Mr Trump even before the ban was announced because speaking in Westminster Hall was “an earned honour” rather than an “automatic right”.
Demonstrators outside Downing Street protest President Trump’s ban on travel from seven Muslim countries (Getty) (Getty Images)
If Mr Trump does make an address to Parliament it is likely to be in the Royal Gallery, in the House of Lords, rather than Westminster Hall.
Ms May announced that Mr Trump had been invited to the UK during her trip to the US at the end of last month.
The trip was viewed as a coup for the Prime Minister at the time as she was the first foreign leader to visit the new Commander in Chief since his inauguration on 20 January but it was quickly marred in controversy after Mr Trump signed the “Muslim ban” on the day she left.
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