Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Politics

KEEP YA NOSE OUT: Biden takes Swipe at Liz Truss’s Economic Plan

COMMENTS by US president Joe Biden about British politics have caused problems for Downing Street.

In a highly unusual intervention, Joe Biden said: “I wasn’t the only one that thought it was a mistake,” when he was asked about Liz Truss’s original economic plan.

During a visit to an ice cream parlour following a fundraising event in Oregon on Saturday, Mr Biden called the outcome “predictable” and said that while he disagrees with the Prime Minister’s strategy, it is up to the British people.

He also dismissed concerns about the strength of the dollar, saying: “The problem is the lack of economic growth and sound policy in other countries.”

Comments by US presidents have led to unwelcome headlines for Number 10 before, but it is still rare for the White House to appear to explicitly criticise a close ally.

Advertisement. Scroll to continue reading.

Only a few weeks ago, an innocuous tweet by Mr Biden gave an indication of the gulf between his economic vision and that of the Prime Minister, when he said he is “sick and tired of trickle-down economics”.

Labour immediately used Mr Biden’s latest comments as further evidence of the damage the chaos of recent weeks has caused to the UK’s reputation.

Shadow foreign secretary David Lammy said: “As well as crashing the economy, Liz Truss’s humiliating U-turns have made Britain’s economy an international punchline.

“President Biden knows the dangerous folly of trickle-down economics.

“His comments confirm the hit our reputation has taken thanks to the Conservatives.

Advertisement. Scroll to continue reading.

“We need a change in government.”

In recent years, prime ministers have often found themselves caught off-guard by comments from across the Atlantic and during Donald Trump’s time in office it was a semi-regular occurrence.

Shortly after his election, Mr Trump caused a headache for then PM Theresa May when he suggested former Ukip leader Nigel Farage could become the UK’s ambassador in Washington.

In 2018, Mr Trump used a visit to the UK to accuse Mrs May of ignoring his advice in her pursuit of a deal with the EU over Brexit.

In an interview with The Sun newspaper, he criticised her negotiating style, lavished praise on Boris Johnson and attacked her Brexit plan.

Advertisement. Scroll to continue reading.

Perhaps one of the most famous interventions from a US leader was not unscripted, when Barack Obama angered Brexiteers weeks before the vote to leave the EU by telling the public that choosing to leave would mean the UK would be at the “back of the queue” in any trade deal.

MUST SEE!..

Latest

IT WAS only a matter of time before members of the Parliamentary Labour Party decided to weaponise some of the disclosures made in Nadine...

Latest

MICHAEL Gove is seeking power through a number of “pliant proxies” in a Machiavellian battle with Tory enforcer Dougie ‘Dr-No’ Smith, Politicalite can exclusively...

Tories

AMERICAN XL bully dogs will be banned by the end of the year following a series of attacks, Rishi Sunak has said. The Prime...

STOP THE BOATS

THE FIRST boat migrants have moved on to a barge in Dorset, named the Bibby Stockholm barge in a Government bid to finally Stop...

CyberWars

HOSPITALS and clinics in several states began the time-consuming process of recovering from a ransomware cyber attack that disrupted computer systems on Friday, forcing...

Politics

PRIME Minister Rishi Sunak is considering watering down policies to tackle the climate emergency as he seeks to take a “proportionate and pragmatic” approach...