Petition opposing Trump's UK visit creeps toward 150,000 signatures

2 March 2025, 22:18

A petition opposing Trump's upcoming visit to the UK has reached 135,000 signatures from disgruntled Brits.

The petition, organised by campaign group 38 Degrees, has some 135,000 signatures directed at Keir Starmer and King Charles.

The monarch invited President Trump for an unusual second state visit on Thursday.

The petition said: "We, the British public, demand that you immediately cancel the offer of a second state visit for Donald Trump.”

The description claims Donald Trump "has buddied up with Putin, cranked up tariffs on trade, slashed aid across the world and berated Ukrainian President Zelensky in the White House."

On Thursday, the online petition only had 10 signatures.

It comes as an explosive row on Friday saw President Trump and his vice-president JD Vance berate President Zelenskyy in front of the world's media for not being grateful enough for US support in Ukraine.

Matthew McGregor, CEO of 38 Degrees said: “The British people back Ukraine in its fight for freedom and independence and they’re sending a clear message to Donald Trump: you’re not welcome in the UK.

"Brits were disgusted by the Oval Office spectacle, where Donald Trump and his sidekicks berated President Zelensky. Their response to those sickening scenes couldn’t be clearer – the Government should withdraw the honour of a second state visit to Britain.

"The speed at which this petition has rocketed is striking, with 135,000 members of the public - and counting - adding their names already.  Not since the campaign to strip Paula Vennells of her CBE have we seen a petition take off quite like this, underlining the strength of outrage and anger amongst the British people.”

King Charles invited Mr Trump for a state visit via Sir Keir during the PM's trip to the White House on Thursday.

Stephen Flynn, the leader of the SNP in Westminster, said Keir Starmer should "get off his knees" instead of "[rolling] out the red carpet" for the US president.

Mr Flynn, who has been joined in his calls by the Scottish Greens, said that Mr Trump's invitation should be rescinded for mocking and bullying Mr Zelenskyy.

These calls were played down by other observers, who said that to retract an invitation would cause a major diplomatic row for the British government - at a time when Sir Keir feels he is on a good footing with Mr Trump.

Should King Charles rescind Donald Trump's state visit invite?

Earlier this week Trump warned Zelenskyy that he was gambling with World War Three during an explosive argument in the White House.

The Ukrainian leader has said that "Ukraine should be heard and not forgotten", after a meeting with Trump got heated on Friday.

He said "People in Ukraine need to know that they are not alone, that their interests are represented in every country, in every corner of the world."

Mr Zelenskyy said earlier that he wanted his US counterpart "to be more on our side" in an interview after the meeting.

Plans for the two countries to sign a minerals agreement, which would see continued US military support in exchange for developing Ukraine's natural resources, were also put on hold when Zelenskyy left the White House early after the astonishing scene.

Zelenskyy said afterwards: "I'm not sure we did anything bad", when asked if he would like to make an apology.

He added: "We're thankful to Americans for all your support, you did a lot, I'm thankful to President Trump and Congress' bipartisan support," Zelensky said.

Friday's meeting descended into acrimony in front of the world's media, having begun relatively calmly. The problems appeared to begin after Vance raised the need for diplomacy.

Zelenskyy seemed to take issue with this, addressing the vice-president directly and saying that Putin could not be trusted, citing countless broken promises over the years.

Vance then accused Zelenskyy of being "disrespectful".

And with Zelenskyy warning that the US would feel the impact of the war if it continues, Trump interrupted saying: "Don't tell us what we're going to feel. We're trying to solve a problem."

"You don't have the card right now... you're gambling with the lives of millions of people... you're gambling with World War Three... and what you're doing is very disrespectful to this country," Trump added.

European leaders including Macron, von der Leyen and Starmer banded together in support of Ukraine in the hours that followed.