Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey has called on Sir Keir Starmer to cancel the King’s US state visit over the war in Iran.
The King is due to visit the US next month.
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Sir Ed said: “Keir Starmer should advise the King that the state visit to the US scheduled for April should be called off.
“At a time when Trump has launched an illegal war that is devastating the Middle East and pushing up energy bills for British families, it’s clear this visit should not go ahead.
“A state visit from our King would be seen as yet another huge diplomatic coup for President Trump, so it should not be given to someone who repeatedly insults and damages our country.”
Sir Keir’s decision not to grant permission for the first wave of military action prompted a raft of criticism from Mr Trump in recent days, including a personal attack on the prime minister as being “not Winston Churchill”.
Sir Keir later granted permission for “defensive” US action against Iranian missile sites from UK bases.
After reports that the UK was preparing an aircraft carrier to go to the Middle East, the US president posted on Saturday that the UK was “finally giving thought” to sending two, but “we don’t need them any longer”.
He added: “But we will remember. We don’t need people that join Wars after we’ve already won!”.
Downing Street confirmed this afternoon that Mr Trump has since spoken to Sir Keir in a phone call.
Earlier, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper would not say when they last spoke.
Speaking to Sky News’s Trevor Phillips, she did not criticise the US president, but defended the prime minister as “acting in the national interest” and said it was not the UK’s style to “conduct diplomacy through social media”.
