The debate won’t be followed by a vote.
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British lawmakers will debate a petition on Monday (Jan 18) calling for United States Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump to be banned from Britain in the wake of his comments on Muslims, a gesture his organisation in Scotland called an “absurd” waste of parliamentary time.
In Britain, an issue can be debated in parliament if at least 100-thousand people sign an online petition.
“While I think this man is insane, while I think this man has no valid points to make, I will not be the one to silence his voice”, said Conservative lawmaker Tom Tugendhat. The petition was launched following Trump’s controversial call for the U.S.to implement a temporary travel ban on all Muslims.
On Donald trump’s behavior, Sir Keir Starmer, a Labour Party lawmaker said, “that is not buffoonery, that is absolutely repugnant”.
“I suspect that Donald Trump’s words were borne out of his own fears, although as an aspirant leader he should be leading the way towards a clearer understanding of the issue”.
The call to ban Trump received more signatures than any other listed on the site, and multiple British news outlets reported lines out the door of members of the public hoping to get in.
Prime Minister David Cameron has condemned Trump’s remarks about Muslims as “divisive, stupid and wrong”, but he and other senior officials have said they do not think Trump should be banned.
Philip Davies, Tory MP for Shipley, said he had heard a large number of his constituents expressing the same views as Trump, and questioned whether those supporting the motion would want them to be excluded as well. “Donald Trump is a fool”.
Another member of Parliament, Paul Flynn, cautioned that banning Trump could “fix on him a halo of victimhood”.
Mr Trump threatened to pull planned investments from his Scottish golf resorts – Trump International Golf Links in Aberdeenshire and the Trump Turnberry resort in South Ayrshire – if a ban is put in place.
“A visit to the site of recent unprecedented areas of flooding in England might be useful and educational for Mr Trump, the global warming denier”, he added.
Labour’s Naz Shah branded the White House hopeful a “demagogue” as MPs discussed whether to ban him from Britain. Instead, she said she would welcome him and challenge him on his views by showing him the British Muslim community.
Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh, SNP member for Ochil and South Perthshire, said 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.
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This led half a million Britons to sign a petition calling for Trump to be banned from visiting the United Kingdom and that, in turn, led Parliament to agree to debate such a ban.
