Everything you need to know about why MPs are debating whether to ban Donald Trump from the UK today
MPs are gearing up to debate whether or not Donald Trump should be banned from the UK today.
The debate follows a petition to have the controversial mogul and US presidential candidate banned from the UK, which garnered over 560,000 signatures in a matter of days.
When is the debate happening?
The petition to ban Donald Trump from entering the UK has been granted a Westminster Hall debate at 4.30pm today.
Why are MPs debating whether to ban Donald Trump?
Trump, well-known for his controversial outbursts and anti-immigrant rhetoric, suggested in December that all Muslims should be banned from entering the US “until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on”. At the time, he suggested parts of the UK were “no-go zones” for non-Muslims.
His words have been heavily criticised, and a petition launched in response to this quickly picked up steam and gathered tens of thousands of signatures in the first few hours.
Politicians also blasted the Republican frontrunner for his words, with Boris Johnson retorting:
Crime has been falling steadily both in London and in New York – and the only reason I wouldn't go to some parts of New York is the real risk of meeting Donald Trump.
Is Donald Trump actually going to be banned from the UK?
Probably not.
Although David Cameron was among the many UK politicians who immediately complained about Trump’s comments, calling them "divisive, unhelpful and quite simply wrong", he has also said he doesn’t want to ban him from the country.
The UK government released an official response to the petition at the end of December, saying “exclusion powers are very serious and are not used lightly”.
But it doesn’t rule out the possibility entirely, adding:
The home secretary [Theresa May] has said that coming to the UK is a privilege and not a right and she will continue to use the powers available to prevent from entering the UK those who seek to harm our society and who do not share our basic values.