Quotes from UK Parliament debate on banning Donald Trump

Britain’s Parliament held a boisterous debate Monday on a proposal to ban Donald Trump from the country in a rebuke of his call to block Muslims from entering the United States.

A BAN on USA presidential candidate Donald Trump from entering the United Kingdom would be a “catastrophe” for the world-famous Ayrshire golf resort which he owns, MPs heard last night.

British lawmakers are obliged to consider for debate any petition on the government’s official petitions website that reaches 100,000 signatures.

A Conservative, Adam Holloway, said: “I feel we should nearly apologize to the people of the United States – it’s for them to decide on Mr. Trump’s views, not us”.

The Democratic National Committee gleefully highlighted the debate, and linked to live web video of the debate in London, saying it was “shameful” that a Republican presidential candidate was the subject of such a debate.

Malone, in a written statement, argued that debating the online petition is “sending a awful message to the world”, and British lawmakers should instead spend their time on more pressing domestic issues like job losses from the declining oil industry.

“And the reason I’d give him an open invitation to visit my constituency is I’d take him to the synagogue, I’d take him to the church, I’d take him to the mosques, I’d invite him for a curry – we are curry capital of Britain”. “But we shouldn’t build him up with our own attacks”.

Tory MP Andrew Murrison conceded that Trump was a “ridiculous” figure, but implored his colleagues not to discount the possibility that America could actually elect such a buffoon.

Calls to bar Mr Trump emerged from some MPs, with Labour’s Jack Dromey (Birmingham Erdington) warning he should not be allowed “within 1,000 miles of our shore”.

But opposition Labour lawmaker Paul Flynn, who will lead the debate, said that while Trump’s comments had been worse than those of many people who have previously been banned by Britain, barring Trump him would only give him more publicity.

This was echoed by Tory MP Victoria Atkins, who said Trump’s views were idiotic and her constituents would call him a “wazzock” – an idiot – but people should be confident enough that his arguments would not win. His (Trump’s) words are not comical, not amusing.

The three-hour discussion in the House of Commons came after a petition seeking his ban got 5,74,000 signatures. “His words are poisonous”.

A separate petition, which opposes banning Trump from the country, will also be debated. “They risk inflaming tensions between vulnerable communities”.

Alex Chalk, a Tory MP, said of Mr Trump’s anti-Muslim comments: “This is about bufoonery”.

Prime Minister David Cameron has condemned many of Trump’s statements but said doesn’t believe he should be banned from the country.

Corbyn said it would be better to engage with Trump, who has made inflammatory comments about Mexicans, gay people, women, Muslims and other groups, than exclude exclude him from the country.