
Nigel Farage has said he would be willing to help Peter Mandelson negotiate with the Trump administration, after the Labor peer was appointed as Westminster’s new ambassador to the US.
Lord Mandelson indicated he believed the UK reform leader, a friend of Donald Trump, could serve as a link between the UK and the Republican president-elect.
But Downing Street did not clarify whether Keir Starmer would like the veteran politician to work with Farage, saying when asked only that the Prime Minister had “already started to start building a relationship” with Trump.
Farage has previously offered to use his relationship with Trump and his team to serve as a bridge between them and Downing Street. He told The Telegraph he would be willing to work with people in the Labor Party if it was in the “national interest”.
“I’m not a fan of any of the people in the Labor Party, but if it’s in the national interest, I’ve always thought I could be a useful asset if they wanted to use that – but if they don’t, they’ll be further deceived,” said MP Clacton.
Farage claimed he could help with talks on trade, tariffs, intelligence sharing and counter-terrorism. “I know these people, and on trade, defense and intelligence, the United States is our most important relationship in the world – forget Brussels,” he said.
He said that the FTA talks are likely to take place sector by sector. “I will help even if it is for the government’s benefit because it is in the national interest. But they are so divided that they may not want to accept my offer.”
Mandelson will take office in early 2025. As a former EU trade commissioner and UK trade secretary, Mandelson’s CV is seen as an asset amid concerns about what a second Trump presidency could mean for the UK, with the Republican politician in place. It pledged to introduce broad definitions.
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However, the Labor leader’s previous comments about Trump – whom he once described as “little less than a white nationalist and a racist” – may sour attempts to foster closer ties between the US and the UK. Over the weekend, State Department sources defended Mandelson after a Trump campaign adviser called him a “complete moron.”