British lawmakers hold 3-hour debate on banning Donald Trump

He sparked fierce controversy last month when he called for a “complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can figure out what the hell is going on”.

Prime Minister David Cameron has condemned Trump’s remarks about Muslims as “divisive, stupid and wrong”, but he and other senior officials have said they do not think Trump should be banned.

Under British law, any issue with more than 100,000 petition signers, with verified email addresses, automatically triggers parliamentary debate.

Labour backbencher Paul Flynn, a member of the Petitions Committee, who opened the debate, defended the decision to debate the ban because the views of more than half a million Britons should not be ignored, and the public should have a say in what’s debated in parliament.

A fool, an idiot, a buffoon – MPs lined up to attack Donald Trump for his comments on Muslims, during a parliamentary debate Monday on whether he should be banned from Britain.

I thank my honourable friend [Tulip Siddiw] for giving way, is she aware that also, some of the things that people find repellent about this individual [Donald Trump] is that he’s not only racist, but that he’s homophobic and misogynistic as well.

In early December, Trump had called for a total ban on Muslims traveling to the United States.

Flynn told the Associated Press that he would try to convey the anger of petitioners, but suggested banning Trump could be “counter-productive” by making him appear to be a victim.

The only reason I wouldn’t go to some parts of NY is the real risk of meeting Donald Trump.

Trump called Salmond “an embarrassment to Scotland”.

The Labour leader said: “I chose to invite Donald Trump on his visit to Britain to come with me to my constituency because he has problems with Mexicans and he has problems with Muslims”.

“Hate crime is being inflamed and stoked by the words that Donald Trump is using”.

Another MP who supports banning the GOP frontrunner framed it in the context of ISIS.

“Donald Trump is a fool”, Dromey said.

Conservative MP Victoria Atkins said his plan to close the U.S. borders was “bonkers”, before reaching for a British colloquialism. Cameron has pointedly looked down on Trump, saying: “If he came to visit our country, I think he would unite us all against him”.

During a debate on whether Mr Trump should be barred from the country James Brokenshire, the immigration minister, said it is not the first time the Presidential hopeful has threatened to withdraw his money from the country.

He said the policy is not targeted at a specific group, adding: ” It is in the UK’s interests that we engage with all presidential candidates – Democratic and Republican – even though we may disagree profoundly on important issues”. As CNN reports, the debate is unlikely to result in any action-but it’s an interesting opportunity for United Kingdom lawmakers to air their views on America’s most controversial presidential candidate.