Donald Trump: 'Diplomatically problematic' if Mandelson-Epstein scandal overshadows state visit

It came on the eve of Mr Trump’s state visit to the UK, with the President landing at Stansted Airport last night.

Today, he will meet the King and Queen, along with the Prince and Princess of Wales, at Windsor Castle ahead of a state banquet.

However, the visit is being overshadowed by the scandal around Lord Mandelson.

Mr Trump has also previously had links to Epstein, and has previously reacted angrily to any mention of the paedophile.

In the House of Commons yesterday, Sir David said: “All I can say is I hope it doesn’t come up because it will be undoubtedly embarrassing and diplomatically problematic for him.”

Foreign Office Minister Stephen Doughty said the Prime Minister and the Government are “focused on deepening our special relationship with the United States”.

He also argued that Sir Keir has been “explicitly clear that the new information is and was not compatible with the duty that we owe the victims of Jeffrey Epstein’s horrendous crimes against women and girls”.

Meanwhile, the Foreign Secretary suggested her department was not responsible for any failure to recognise risks in the appointment of Lord Mandelson to the Washington job.

The Foreign Office was not asked to contribute to a due diligence process ahead of the decision, nor were any concerns raised with the department about the peer, Yvette Cooper said, amid questions about the vetting process.

Her comments are likely to pile pressure on the Cabinet Office, No 10 and Sir Keir for their role in deciding the Labour grandee was suitable for the position.

During the debate, Dame Emily Thornberry questioned whether those vetting Lord Mandelson were told to “overlook” a “glaring national security and reputational risk”.

The chairwoman of the Foreign Affairs Committee said: “The question is this, did the Cabinet Office miss the glaring red flag of Lord Mandelson’s relationship with Epstein, or did it fail to pass those concerns on.”

The row threatens to overshadow Mr Trump’s long-awaited second state visit today and tomorrow.

Asked what he hoped to achieve before he set off yesterday, the US President told reporters: “My relationship is very good with the UK, and Charles, as you know, who’s now King, is my friend.

“It’s the first time this has ever happened where somebody was honoured twice. So, it’s a great honour.

“And this one’s at Windsor. They’ve never used Windsor Castle for this before. They use Buckingham Palace.

“And I don’t want to say one’s better than the other, but they say Windsor Castle is the ultimate, right? So it’s going to be nice.”

He continued: “Primarily it’s to be with Prince Charles and Camilla. They’re friends of mine for a long time, long before he was King, and it’s an honour to have this King.

“And, you know, I think he represents the country so well. He’s such an elegant gentleman and he represents the country so well.”

Mr Trump added that he will “talk to” ministers seeking a relief from steel levies.

The UK and US signed a trade deal in June that reduced tariffs on car and aerospace imports to the US, but failed to agree on terms for British steel, leaving tariffs on it at 25 per cent.

Mr Trump said: “I’m there also on trade. They want to see if they can refine the trade deal a little bit.

“We’ve made a deal, and it’s a great deal, and I’m into helping them.

“Our country is doing very well. We’ve never done this well. We’re having trillions of dollars come in because of the tariffs.

“They’d like to see if they could get a little bit better deal. So, we’ll talk to them.”

His comments will be welcomed by Peter Kyle, the newly-appointed Business Secretary, who said that tariff relief for UK steel is being negotiated and that he will “make sure that we have an announcement as soon as possible”.