The British capital was buzzing ahead of US President Donald Trump's state visit on Monday. Who is in favour of America's most powerful man visiting the island and who is feeling less positive?
ADVERTISEMENTThe English capital is buzzing during US President Donald Trump's state visit.
But who is in favour of America's most powerful man visiting the island and who is feeling less positive?
Happy for Trump to come
US ambassador to the UK Woody Johnson
In an interview ahead of Trump's trip, Johnson, who has known Trump for decades, said he thought "everything is going to go great" on the state visit.
Speaking to the BBC's Andrew Marr Show, he also addressed the subject of post-Brexit trade relations between the allies, saying "all things that are traded would be on the table" — including healthcare — in talks to reach a deal.
The ambassador added that the UK would not be forced to accept US agriculture standards to reach an agreement, adding the "American food supply is as safe as anything in Europe".
Nigel Farage
Trump this weekend came out in favour of the Brexit Party leader being involved in the UK government's negotiations around leaving the EU, calling him a “terrific person”.
The US president also said Britain should be prepared to leave the EU with no deal, in an interview published in The Sunday Times.
Boris Johnson
The US president said ahead of his visit to the UK that the former mayor of London and ex-foreign secretary Boris Johnson would be an "excellent" choice for the Conservative Party leadership.
In the interview with The Sun, Trump said: "I actually have studied it very hard. I know the different players. But I think Boris would do a very good job. I think he would be excellent. I like him. I have always liked him."
When Trump's visit was announced, Johnson labelled it "FANTASTIC news".
Although, in 2015 when he was mayor of London, Johnson lashed out at Trump's comments that there were "no-go areas" in the city, saying they "betray a quite stupefying ignorance that makes him frankly unfit to hold the office of president of the United States".
It's a pain rather than a pleasure...
Sadiq Khan
The mayor of London on Sunday labelled Trump "one of the most egregious examples of a growing global threat," writing in The Observer on Sunday.
He added it was "so un-British to be rolling out the red carpet this week for a formal state visit for a president whose divisive behaviour flies in the face of the ideals America was founded upon – equality, liberty and religious freedom."
Trump responded in a tweet dubbing Khan a "stone-cold loser" and said he should focus on crime in London "not me".
67% of residents
In a recent YouGov survey, 67% of respondents said they had a negative opinion of Donald Trump, with just 21% saying they had a positive opinion of the leader, while 12% reported having a neutral opinion.
Met police
Tens of thousands of protesters were set to gather in the British capital and while many objected to the president's visit, some were there to show their support for the president.
With demonstrations planned outside Buckingham Palace, the US embassy, and on Trafalgar Square, London's Met Police security operations will likely require thousands of police officers.
Meghan Markle
The Duchess of Sussex won't be attending festivities surrounding Trump's visit, giving maternity leave as the official reason for her absence.
ADVERTISEMENTHowever, before becoming British royalty, she criticised the US president calling him “misogynistic” and “divisive”, saying she would be tempted to move to Canada if he won the US presidential election.
Trump said in an interview with The Sun last week that Markle was "nasty" about him — a claim which he denied, despite the paper posting a recording of the interview.
“I never called Meghan Markle “nasty”,” he wrote on Twitter. “Made up by the Fake News Media, and they got caught cold!
“Will @CNN, @nytimes and others apologize? Doubt it!”
When asked about her comments, Trump could be heard saying: "I didn't know that. What can I say? I didn't know that she was nasty."
ADVERTISEMENTJeremy Corbyn
Leader of the UK opposition Jeremy Corbyn is boycotting the state banquet at Buckingham Palace with Trump and on Saturday said the US president's comments backing Johnson were “an entirely unacceptable interference in our democracy.”
The Labour leader said in a statement the next prime minister "should be chosen not by the US president".
Corbyn announced on Monday afternoon that he would be speaking at a protest against the state visit the following day.
On Donald Trump's second day which will be less about pageantry and more businesslike, Britain will want to talk about climate change and its disappointment that the US withdraw Paris Climate Change Accord.
It will also want to discuss the escalation of tensions between Iran and the United States.
ADVERTISEMENTThe US has the Chinese technology company Huawei very much on its mind. It's encouraging all of its allies not to allow Huawei to be involved in creation of the new 5G mobile phone network.
The talks are expected to be more symbolic than significant on this occasion.
The second day of Trump's visit is also expected to witness tens of thousands of protesters gathering in London and other cities around the UK.