Donald Trump was branded a racist demagogue, a buffoon and a "wazzock" in the British parliament as MPs debated whether to ban the Republican presidential candidate from coming to the UK.
MPs attacked Mr Trump for his views on Muslims, women, disabled people and global warming in the two-hour discussion, with some suggesting he was inflaming hate crime against minorities.
However, the majority of parliamentarians from all sides dismissed the idea of banning the businessman, with one saying it would fuel his publicity machine and give him the “halo of victimhood”.
Petition
About 50 MPs out of 650 were present for the discussion, which was triggered by a petition signed by more than half a million people. Any petition that attracts more than 100,000 signatories is considered by MPs to decide whether it is worthy of a full debate.
Mr Trump drew international condemnation when he called for a "complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on".
Those most in favour of a ban were some members of the Scottish National Party (SNP), while the Conservative and Labour leaderships opposed the idea. Mr Trump owns golf courses in Scotland.
Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh, SNP member for Ochil and South Perthshire, said Mr Trump was racist and she felt so strongly in favour of a ban because his words about Muslims applied to her, her family and her friends.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has responded to the controversy by inviting Trump to tour a north London mosque. He said it would be better to engage with Trump than exclude him from the country. – Guardian service