Theresa May criticises Donald Trump's Charlottesville protest response
The PM hits out at Donald Trump for not singling out white supremacists for criticism after deadly unrest in Virginia.
Wednesday 16 August 2017 18:09, UK
Theresa May has criticised Donald Trump for comments he made on Tuesday regarding the Charlottesville protest, saying there is "no equivalence" between fascists and their opponents.
The Prime Minister spoke out after Mr Trump claimed there was for the clashes at a white-supremacist march that left one person dead.
Mrs May told reporters on Wednesday: "I see no equivalence between those who profound fascists views and those who oppose them.
"I think it is important for all those in positions of responsibility to condemn far-right views wherever we hear them."
It comes after the PM originally failed the President made on Saturday about the violence. On Monday her spokesman said: "What the President says is a matter for him.
"We are very clear. We condemn racism, hatred and violence. We condemn the far right."
But before Mrs May issued her second statement, some senior Tories had begun to criticise the US leader directly.
Communities minister Sajid Javid became the first UK Cabinet minister to directly challenge Mr Trump, writing in a post on Twitter: "Neo-Nazis: bad. Anti-Nazis: good. I learned that as a child. It was pretty obvious."
Justice minister Sam Gyimah also said "silence matters" and told people "we must call out hate - unambiguously".
The leader of the Scottish Conservatives Ruth Davidson wrote: "The President of the United States has just turned his face to the world to defend Nazis, fascists and racists. For shame."
A Tory MP, Robert Jenrick, also promoted a tweet from US senator John McCain that read: "There's no moral equivalency between racists & Americans standing up to defy hate& bigotry. The President of the United States should say so."
Labour MPs have also used the controversy to call for Mr Trump's state visit to the UK to be cancelled.
Shadow defence secretary Nia Griffith tweeted: "A state visit by #DonaldTrump would shame this country and betray all we stand for. Theresa May should revoke the invitation immediately."
Nottingham South MP Lilian Greenwood said Mr Trump's comments were "sickening" and a "new low".
"When will UK Govt admit he should never had been invited for a state visit?" she asked.
Mrs May has previously faced criticism for .
In January, she dodged three questions on Trump's immigration ban, eventually saying: "The United States is responsible for United States policy on refugees. The UK is responsible for UK policy on refugees."