Sadiq Khan Says Donald Trump Should Not Visit The UK Following His London Attack Tweets

    The mayor of London previously said he was too busy to reply to the US president's "ill-informed" tweets.

    Donald Trump has once again decided to comment on the London Bridge terror attack, which resulted in the deaths of seven people, by criticising Sadiq Khan.

    The US president accused Khan of having "to think fast" after the mayor of London said there was no reason for Londoners to be alarmed following the terror attack, which appears to have been conducted by Islamist extremists.

    Trump also said the mainstream media was spinning the story on the mayor's behalf and implied Khan, one of the only Muslim mayors of a major Western city, had to come up with an explanation for his comments after the event.

    Pathetic excuse by London Mayor Sadiq Khan who had to think fast on his "no reason to be alarmed" statement. MSM is working hard to sell it!

    After remaining silent on Trump's comments initially, Khan called for Trump's state visit to the UK to be cancelled due to his tweets.

    "I don’t think we should roll out the red carpet to the president of the USA in the circumstances where his policies go against everything we stand for,” Khan said during an appearance on Channel 4 News on Monday night.

    “When you have a special relationship it is no different from when you have got a close mate. You stand with them in times of adversity but you call them out when they are wrong. There are many things about which Donald Trump is wrong.”

    Trump took Khan's comment out of context on Sunday morning when he implied the Muslim mayor was playing down the impact of the attack. The original quote was intended to reassure Londoners they had "no reason to be alarmed" by the "increased police presence today and over the course of the next few days" on the streets of the capital, rather than by the attack itself.

    Khan's original quote continued: "I'm reassured that we are one of the safest global cities in the world, if not the safest global city, but we always evolve and review to make sure we're as safe as we possibly can be."

    Downing Street and Conservative ministers issued a statement in support of the mayor of London on Sunday, and a Downing Street spokesperson reiterated the same line after Trump's latest tweet.

    Khan's spokesperson originally said the mayor had "more important things to do" than "respond to Donald Trump's ill-informed tweet that deliberately takes out of context his remarks urging Londoners not to be alarmed when they saw more police – including armed officers – on the streets."

    On Monday the spokesperson reiterated this stance: "Nothing has changed since yesterday. The mayor is focused on dealing with Saturday's horrific and cowardly attacks and working with the police, the emergency services, and the government to keep London safe."

    The US Conference of Mayors, which represents the leaders of major US cities of all political allegiances, also sent a message congratulating Khan on his leadership.

    Even prime minister Theresa May, whose Conservative government is currently in an election battle with Khan's Labour party, took the time on the campaign trail to give her backing to the mayor of London.

    "I think Sadiq is doing an excellent job," she said.

    However, when asked by BuzzFeed News what it would take for her to publicly criticise Trump, she was less direct: "Well I've been been very clear, I've been very happy to say that I think President Trump is wrong to have taken America out of the climate change agreement, out of the Paris agreement. The United Kingdom stays in it and we believe it's an important international agreement. So I'm not afraid to say when I think President Trump is getting things wrong."

    The comments also raise issues about Trump's forthcoming state visit to the UK. Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said it was clear the visit should not go ahead.