Trump says Starmer is doing ‘a very good job’ ahead of phone call between two leaders
26 January 2025, 07:30 | Updated: 26 January 2025, 07:45
Donald Trump said he has a ‘very good relationship’ with Starmer, and that the PM is doing a ‘very good job’ despite their political differences ahead of a call between the two leaders.
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The newly inaugurated US president praised Keir Starmer in comments made aboard Air Force One on Saturday, saying he’s a ‘very good person’.
Trump said he has a "very good relationship" with Starmer, adding the Prime Minister has done a "very good job thus far".
"He's liberal, which is a bit different from me, but I think he's a very good person and I think he's done a very good job thus far,” Trump told reporters accompanying him on the plane.
He said he plans to call his UK counterpart ‘over the next 24 hours’, suggesting the president has not called Starmer yet since his inauguration.
"I get along with him well. I like him a lot," Trump said.
"He's represented his country in terms of philosophy… I may not agree with his philosophy, but I have a very good relationship with him."
The President added that he was considering a visit to the UK as the first international trip of his second term as president.
He said: "It could be Saudi Arabia, it could be UK. Traditionally it could be UK."
"Last time I went to Saudi Arabia because they agreed to buy $450 billion of American United States merchandise."
Read more: US-UK relations will 'flourish' under Trump presidency, Starmer pledges
Starmer released a statement congratulating Trump on his inauguration on Monday, saying the so-called special relationship between the US and UK “will continue to flourish for years to come".
Sir Keir most recently met with Trump at Trump Tower in New York during the presidential campaign.
The pair also spoke on the phone following Trump's election victory in November, with Downing Street saying both men agreed the relationship between the UK and US was "incredibly strong" and would "continue to thrive".
Trump’s comments mark a difference in his administration’s usual criticisms of Starmer, after Trump derided the PM for his energy strategy and Elon Musk, a key ally of his administration, over his handling of grooming gangs.
Before his inauguration, Trump called on the prime minister to “open up” the North Sea for fossil fuel extraction and told him to “get rid of windmills” used to generate clean energy.
Mr Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform: “The U.K. is making a very big mistake. Open up the North Sea. Get rid of Windmills!”
His campaign also filed a complaint in October accusing Labour of election interference in the US presidential election by sending party members to campaign for Kamala Harris.
Elon Musk, one of Trump’s highest-profile allies set to head a new government efficiency department, also criticised Starmer and members of the Labour leadership over their alleged mishandling of the grooming gangs scandal.
In an incendiary series of tweets on Thursday, Musk claimed the Prime Minister failed to bring "rape gangs" to justice when he was director of public prosecutions (DPP) between 2008 and 2013.
Former Trump Advisor says why Elon Musk can "weigh in on whatever he wants", including UK politics
He suggested that the King should “dissolve parliament and order a general election… for the sake and security” of the UK,” and reposted a photo of Sir Keir, which had the overlaid text "I facilitate child rape" to his 210 million followers.
The world’s richest man also said that Labour MP Jess Phillips "deserves to be in prison" over her failure to launch an inquiry.
In response, Starmer said Elon Musk is "desperate for attention" and urged him to stop spreading “lies” as he leapt to the defence of Jess Phillips
"I'm prepared to call this out for what it is... the whipping up of intimidation and threats of violence, hoping that the media will amplify it," Starmer said.
Following Mr Trump's inauguration on January 20, Foreign Secretary David Lammy indicated Sir Keir would visit Washington within weeks.
It remains to be seen how Trump’s second term as president will impact the UK and the wider world, in matters of trade, defence, immigration, climate and his position on the war in Ukraine.
Read more about how Trump’s presidency will impact the UK in our explainer.
