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US travel ban: petition against Trump UK visit passes one million signature mark – live US travel ban: petition against Trump UK visit passes one million signature mark – live
(35 minutes later)
12.13pm GMT
12:13
The insurance company AXA UK, says its travel policy holders will be entitled to claims if they have been hit by Trump’s travel ban. It said:
“In light of the sudden and unexpected decision by the Trump administration to block entry to the US for nationals from Syria, Somalia, Sudan, Iraq, Iran, Libya and Yemen, AXA Insurance UK confirms that individuals who have been denied entry as a result of the executive order, will be able to claim on their policy. Although not technically covered, we view the current situation as unprecedented and unforeseen and as such we are extending the cover under our policies. For those intending to travel to, or return from, the United States of America we recommend allowing extra time due to protests currently taking place at a number of airports.”
12.10pm GMT
12:10
Andrew Sparrow
Andrew Sparrow is just back form a lobby briefing where Downing Street could not explain contradictions in foreign advice about dual nationals and a new statement from the US embassy in London.
This morning the American embassy in London has put out a statement suggesting that Britons with dual nationality from Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen will be affected by the US travel ban.
This appears to contradict the statement issued by the Foreign Office last night.
Asked about the statement from the American embassy, the prime minister’s spokesman said he could not comment because he had not seen it.
But this is what he did say about the issue.
Britons are not getting special treatment in relation to the travel ban, the spokesman said. He said the Foreign Office statement last night about how the new US rules affected dual nationals was not intended to mean that British dual nationals were getting preferential treatment. It was meant to be a clarification of how the rules affected dual nationals generally.
The spokesman confirmed that Britain did not agree with President Trump’s move. “We disagree with these restrictions,” the spokesman said. He said that statement covered all aspects of the Trump travel ban.
More here.
12.06pm GMT
12:06
Suzanne Moore argues that a state visit would be worse than appeasing Trump.
The British state reserves its pomp and pageantry for those with shared values. To do this for Trump is not simply appeasing his, but legitimising his regime. This is not just embarrassing for the Queen but for every decent citizen. The vicar’s daughter may have lost her moral compass somewhere over the Atlantic, but this petition and the debate it prompts shows more than a million of us are clinging onto ours. It is not in the national interest to bend a knee to hate.
12.03pm GMT
12:03
The UK Syrian community has condemned Trumps travel ban and warned that it could lead to a rise in hate crime in the UK. In a statement it said:
We fear that this executive order will have a reverse effect of fuelling hate and inciting terrorism in the UK and across the world, as we have already seen by the terrorist shooting at a Canadian mosque on 29 January which killed six worshippers and injured an additional eight. Such potential ramifications were stressed by US Republican Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham who argued in a joint statement that Trump’s Muslim ban could ‘become a self-inflicted wound in the fight against terrorism’.
We are also concerned about the repercussions that Trump’s Muslim ban will have against Syrian refugees who fled the Syrian conflict under the worst imaginable conditions – arbitrary arrest, torture, constant bombardment, and relentless siege. This group deserves compassion and assistance from Western countries, not to mention that many have fled from the very terrorism which Trump has vowed to eradicate. We call upon the UK to echo the stand of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau by welcoming Syrian refugees banned by the US into the UK ...
We call upon the government to offer a formal protest against Trump’s Muslim ban and to denounce it as discriminatory and counterproductive to the fight against terror.
11.59am GMT
11:59
Ukip’s former leader Nigel Farage has backed Trump’s travel ban and called on the UK government to impose similar measures.
He accused Britain’s political establishment of hypocrisy by failing to speak out against a temporary ban on Iraqi’s entering the US imposed by President Obama in 2011.
Speaking to BBC News Farage said: “It is seems to me that when Obama does something that’s fine, but that somehow Trump in this category of being a bad guy.”
He added: “This was all part of his manifesto, and in fact in some ways he hasn’t gone as far as he said in some parts of the campaign.”
Asked if he wanted to see extreme vetting in the UK, Farage said: “I certainly do. I want us to be as careful as we can.”
“I’ve got moderate Muslim friends living in this country, who feel every time there is a terrorist attack that their quality of life is declining hugely. So anything we can do actually to stop these things happening actually makes it better for everybody.”
11.43am GMT11.43am GMT
11:4311:43
Severin Carrell
Martin Ford, the councillor who sparked a year long planning battle in 2008 over Donald Trump’s first Scottish golf course in Aberdeenshire, has signed the petition against the US president’s state visit, writes Severin Carrell.Martin Ford, the councillor who sparked a year long planning battle in 2008 over Donald Trump’s first Scottish golf course in Aberdeenshire, has signed the petition against the US president’s state visit, writes Severin Carrell.
Then a Liberal Democrat councillor who chaired the area’s neighbourhood committee, Ford used his casting vote to block Trump’s proposals for a £1bn golf resort because it ruined rare and environmentally protected dunes and breached the local plan. The committee’s rejection split the council. Scottish ministers, supported by the then first minister and local MSP Alex Salmond, ordered a public inquiry which pushed the plan through.Then a Liberal Democrat councillor who chaired the area’s neighbourhood committee, Ford used his casting vote to block Trump’s proposals for a £1bn golf resort because it ruined rare and environmentally protected dunes and breached the local plan. The committee’s rejection split the council. Scottish ministers, supported by the then first minister and local MSP Alex Salmond, ordered a public inquiry which pushed the plan through.
Now a Scottish Green party councillor, Ford said; “The petition makes the point that since, unbelievably, Mr Trump is now the President of the United States, the UK will have to deal with him and admit him to this country in that capacity. However, we don’t have to give him the honour of an official state visit and meeting the Queen, and we clearly shouldn’t.Now a Scottish Green party councillor, Ford said; “The petition makes the point that since, unbelievably, Mr Trump is now the President of the United States, the UK will have to deal with him and admit him to this country in that capacity. However, we don’t have to give him the honour of an official state visit and meeting the Queen, and we clearly shouldn’t.
“Mr Trump is a deeply unpleasant individual with abhorrent views. So while we can’t ignore Mr Trump, the UK must do nothing that suggests support or approval of his behaviour.”“Mr Trump is a deeply unpleasant individual with abhorrent views. So while we can’t ignore Mr Trump, the UK must do nothing that suggests support or approval of his behaviour.”
The UK Parliament petitions website shows lukewarm support for the petition in the surrounding Commons constituency of Gordon, where Salmond is the MP, with only 1.35% support.The UK Parliament petitions website shows lukewarm support for the petition in the surrounding Commons constituency of Gordon, where Salmond is the MP, with only 1.35% support.
Updated
at 11.46am GMT
11.38am GMT11.38am GMT
11:3811:38
Iraq’s parliament has voted to “retaliate” against the travel ban, according to snap from Reuters.Iraq’s parliament has voted to “retaliate” against the travel ban, according to snap from Reuters.
Baghdad Invest says Iraq has banned US citizens from travelling to Iraq for 90 days.Baghdad Invest says Iraq has banned US citizens from travelling to Iraq for 90 days.
Iraq has said that once USA lifts the travel ban on citizens of Iraq travelling to the United States of America, it would do the same.Iraq has said that once USA lifts the travel ban on citizens of Iraq travelling to the United States of America, it would do the same.
11.33am GMT11.33am GMT
11:3311:33
Peter Walker has asked the Foreign Office to clarify the advice to dual nationals about travelling to the US.Peter Walker has asked the Foreign Office to clarify the advice to dual nationals about travelling to the US.
This runs contrary to FCO advice - which says dual nationals •will• be allowed in if not travelling from one of the seven countries. pic.twitter.com/GkAEQXp5QzThis runs contrary to FCO advice - which says dual nationals •will• be allowed in if not travelling from one of the seven countries. pic.twitter.com/GkAEQXp5Qz
I've asked the Foreign Office to explain the seeming contradiction.I've asked the Foreign Office to explain the seeming contradiction.
11.30am GMT11.30am GMT
11:3011:30
The European Union is analysing Trump’s ban to see if it would affect Europeans, a spokesman for the bloc’s executive said, Reuters reports.The European Union is analysing Trump’s ban to see if it would affect Europeans, a spokesman for the bloc’s executive said, Reuters reports.
European Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas told a news conference that the bloc was getting “conflicting input” on whether the ban would affect EU citizens with dual nationality from the countries affected.European Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas told a news conference that the bloc was getting “conflicting input” on whether the ban would affect EU citizens with dual nationality from the countries affected.
Asked about Trump’s move, he said that the EU itself did not discriminate among people arriving on the grounds of race, nationality or religion.Asked about Trump’s move, he said that the EU itself did not discriminate among people arriving on the grounds of race, nationality or religion.
11.28am GMT11.28am GMT
11:2811:28
US embassy in the UK suspends visa issuance to nationals and dual nationalsUS embassy in the UK suspends visa issuance to nationals and dual nationals
So much for that apparent commitment to Boris Johnson about dual nationals in the UK.So much for that apparent commitment to Boris Johnson about dual nationals in the UK.
The US embassy in the UK has repeated that warning, made in Berlin, about visa issuance.The US embassy in the UK has repeated that warning, made in Berlin, about visa issuance.
Per US Presidential Executive Order signed on January 27, 2017, visa issuance to aliens from the countries of Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen has been suspended effective immediately until further notification.Per US Presidential Executive Order signed on January 27, 2017, visa issuance to aliens from the countries of Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen has been suspended effective immediately until further notification.
If you are a national, or dual national, of one of these countries, please do not schedule a visa appointment or pay any visa fees at this time.If you are a national, or dual national, of one of these countries, please do not schedule a visa appointment or pay any visa fees at this time.
If you already have an appointment scheduled, please DO NOT ATTEND your appointment as we will not be able to proceed with your visa interview. Please note that certain travel for official governmental purposes, related to official business at or on behalf of designated international organizations, on behalf of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or by certain officials is not subject to this suspension.If you already have an appointment scheduled, please DO NOT ATTEND your appointment as we will not be able to proceed with your visa interview. Please note that certain travel for official governmental purposes, related to official business at or on behalf of designated international organizations, on behalf of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or by certain officials is not subject to this suspension.
11.20am GMT11.20am GMT
11:2011:20
Former shadow home secretary, Yvette Cooper, now chair of the home affairs select committee, has backed calls for an emergency debate on Trump’s travel ban.Former shadow home secretary, Yvette Cooper, now chair of the home affairs select committee, has backed calls for an emergency debate on Trump’s travel ban.
I'm supporting this call for emergency debate on Trump ban on refugees & Muslims. What US is doing is v dangerous & we need to speak out https://t.co/EjcvKxFwJDI'm supporting this call for emergency debate on Trump ban on refugees & Muslims. What US is doing is v dangerous & we need to speak out https://t.co/EjcvKxFwJD
UpdatedUpdated
at 11.20am GMTat 11.20am GMT
11.17am GMT
11:17
US embassy in Berlin suspends visa issuances to seven countries
The US embassy in Berlin has said that visa issuance had been suspended to nationals, or dual nationals, of Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.
In an update on its Facebook page, the embassy said:
“Per US Presidential Executive Order signed on January 27, 2017, visa issuance to aliens from the countries of Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen has been suspended effective immediately until further notification.”
“If you are a national, or dual national, of one of these countries, please do not schedule a visa appointment or pay any visa fees at this time.”
11.13am GMT
11:13
Workers from companies such as Facebook and Google have no idea when they’ll next see their family, as startup founders say their companies are at risk, writes Olivia Solon in San Francisco
11.07am GMT
11:07
Congress should move to impeach Trump over this growing crisis, argues Trevor Timm.
No matter your political views, the fact that the White House is attempting to circumvent legal advice, install dubious appointees to incredible powerful national security positions and violate court orders is outrageous and despicable, so let’s be clear: Congress needs to quickly move towards impeachment if this is true.
11.01am GMT
11:01
Stephanie Kirchgaessner
In the US, a handful of powerful Catholic cardinals have spoken forcefully against Trump’s executive order, writes Stephanie Kirchgaessner.
Joe Tobin, the newly installed cardinal in Newark, New Jersey, even appeared to suggest that Donald Trump was a con man after criticising the proposed building of a border wall as “not rational” and “inhuman”.
On Twitter Tobin wrote: “A fearful nation talks about building walls and is vulnerable to con men. We must challenge the fear before we are led into darkness”.
Another cardinal, Blasé Cupich of Chicago, said the weekend had been a “dark moment in US history”. He said the implementation of Trump’s order to halt migrants and refugees had been “rushed, chaotic, cruel, and oblivious to the realities that will produce enduring security for the US”.
Cupich added: “The world is watching as we abandon our commitments to American values. These actions give aid and comfort to those who would destroy our way of life. They lower our estimation in the eyes of the many peoples who want to know America as a defender of human rights and religious liberty, not a nation that targets religious populations and then shuts its doors on them.”
But there was one notable voice of support for Trump. Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia, the leading conservative in the US Catholic hierarchy who was recently passed over for a promotion by Pope Francis, called on the University of Notre Dame to honour Trump with an honourary degree this spring.
In a statement on Friday, Chaput decried the intense opposition to Trump and hailed the Republican president’s opposition to abortion rights.
10.58am GMT
10:58
The Board of Deputies of British Jews has added its voice to growing international condemnation of the travel ban.
Jonathan Arkush, President of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, said: “Bans based on national origin are indiscriminate and unjust. They would be unlawful in UK law. While we all understand the need to properly check those who enter our countries, this needs to be balanced with compassion towards the plight of those fleeing for their lives.”
Arkush added: “This is a dismaying beginning to a new US Administration. Good government needs cool, rational judgments delivered professionally, not hasty policy-making on the hoof. All those who respect and admire the USA’s commitment to freedom will call on President Trump to review this misconceived executive order.”
10.53am GMT
10:53
Here’s video of protesters ralling in some of the United States’ largest airports in anger over president Trump’s travel ban. Demonstrations have taken place in several cities after the US president imposed a freeze on refugee admissions and banned travellers from seven Muslim-majority countries.
10.52am GMT
10:52
Here’s a summary of how things currently stand.
Donald Trump’s plans to prevent people from seven mainly Muslim countries entering the US have caused confusion, protests and a series of legal actions at entry ports across the US.
Downing Street has insisted that Trump’s state visit to the UK will go ahead despite widespread criticism of the invite including from several former ministers. A Downing Street source said: “To scrap the visit would undo everything following Mrs May’s visit. America is a huge and important ally we have to think long term.”
More than a million people have signed a petition calling for the visit to be cancelled. The Commons is expected to vote on Tuesday on whether to debate the visit.
Foreign secretary Boris Johnson is due to update the Commons on US travel ban.
Labour has accused Theresa May of “appeasing” Trump by refusing to withdraw the state visit invitation. Shami Chakrabarti, shadow attorney general, said: “The world is in a very precarious situation at the moment and we will not make this world safer or fairer by appeasing bullies like Mr Trump.”
The White House has defended the policy as a “massive success” and Trump himself has denied it is a ban on Muslims.
Thousands took to the streets in major cities and converged on airports to protest the executive orders. Protests blocked the main road outside the international terminal at Los Angeles international airport late on Sunday night.
Several people are reported still detained at LA airport, scene of legal challenges to the ban. An Iranian man with a valid visa is on his way back to the US after a federal court injunction stayed his removal back to Dubai from LA.
Indonesia, a Muslim nation not covered by the ban, said the policy could hurt the global fight against terror.
The Archbishop of Chicago, Cardinal Blase Cupich, said the travel orders were a “dark moment” in US history and contrary to American values.
Financial markets in Asia fell amid the confusion surrounding the orders and amid ongoing concern that Trump will pursue protectionist trade policies. Markets were set to fall in Europe on the opening.
10.26am GMT
10:26
Adam Vaughan has more on that decision by Starbuck to hire 10,000 refugees.
10.22am GMT
10:22
Boris Johnson to make Commons statement on the travel ban
Andrew Sparrow
Boris Johnson, the foreign secretary, will be making a statement in the Commons later about the US travel ban, he has told Sky News.
NEW: @BorisJohnson confirms he will be making a statement to the Commons later on #Trump, tells reporter 'House of Commons, be there!'
Updated
at 10.30am GMT
10.18am GMT
10:18
David Agren
Mexicans are musing openly about how to retaliate against Trump’s bullying, writes David Agren in Mexico City.
Mexico may lack the size, stature and economic might of its northern neighbour, but analysts say the country does have options, all of which should be under consideration due to the severity of the crisis.
“He ranted and raved during the campaign, but the guy has a knife to our throat now,” said Federico Estévez, political science professor at the Autonomous Technological Institute of Mexico. “But it’s not like Mexico has no leverage. It does.”
The Mexican president, Enrique Peña Nieto, has stated unequivocally that Mexico will not pay for a wall which could cost as much as $25bn, but analysts say price isn’t the issue.
“It’s a deal-breaker, but not because of the wall,” Estévez said. “It’s because of the public nature of the humiliation involved. What it really entails is sinking Nafta.”
Nafta opened up a Mexican economy that was once so closed that candy and consumer goods like Levi’s Jeans were smuggled across the frontier and sold as contraband. Mexico now sends 80% of its exports north and cross-border trade totals more than $500bn.
Trump could tank the deal in ways other than ripping it up. He could pursue an “America first” line on investment, making it untenable for Mexico to remain a signatory, or simply jawbone companies into avoiding Mexican investments – as he has done with carmakers.