BRIGHTON and Hove’s MPs have said Donald Trump should be allowed to visit the UK – but shouldn’t be given a state visit.

There has been much debate about whether the President should be afforded a state visit after Prime Minister Theresa May made the offer following her trip to Washington last month.

Some two million people signed a petition saying the visit would cause the Queen “embarrassment”

Many have gone as far as to say the President should be banned from the country altogether following his racist and sexist comments and his bid to ban Muslims from the US.

Peter Kyle, Labour MP for Hove, said Trump should be welcomed.

He said: “As two countries with an intertwined history and shared values who have fought together in some of the darkest times in human history, it is right that the leaders of our two countries meet and discuss ways to work together.

“However, a state visit is the highest honour we can bestow upon a head of state.

“As the Speaker said, it is a privilege that needs to be earned. Nelson Mandela and Barack Obama both waited years before being granted a state visit, and so should Donald Trump.”

Caroline Lucas, Green MP for Brighton Pavilion, agreed.

She said: “It’s right and proper he should be allowed to visit the UK.

“I am sure he will witness considerable peaceful protest and opposition to his policies when he is here and that should also be allowed.”

She added: “A state visit is a special privilege to reward things like distinguished service and remarkable achievements.

“He has not earned that privilege and Theresa May was wrong in her unseemly haste to make this offer, which smacks of a bribe in the quest for a post Brexit trade deal.”

The Argus contacted the city’s other MP, Simon Kirby, Conservative for Brighton Kemptown, but by the time of going to press he had not responded.

Mrs May issued the invitation to the US president on her visit to Washington last month.

There have been calls for the visit to be put on hold or scaled back but the Government has said it will go ahead as planned.

However, the Government has said it has no plans to rescind its offer, adding that the Prime Minister looked forward to meeting President Trump later in the year.

TRUMP AND MAY WILL BUILD WALLS NOT BRIDGES

DONALD TRUMP shocked his opponents and delighted his supporters as he hit the campaign trail last year.

He vowed to ban Muslims, to build a wall to keep out the Mexicans and to cosy up to Putin’s Russia.

But most thought that once he got the keys to the Oval Office he would water down his rhetoric and act more statesmanlike.

But after five weeks of Trump’s presidency it appears that is not going to be the case.

Peter Kyle, MP for Hove, said the leader of the free world had made a terrible start.

He said: “The first few weeks of the Trump administration has been shambolic.

“But so far we are only able to judge him on his rhetoric because his inability to manage the other branches of the state have prevented him from actually delivering any of his campaign challenges.”

He added that now was not a time to panic but instead to show that there is a different outlook.

He said: “I urge people who are shocked by his rhetoric, as I have been, to focus on how an alternative narrative that is equally powerful yet focussed on quality and social justice can be developed.

“It is not the job of opposition to stand around hoping he will fail. It is our job to show our values and principals stand a better chance of solving the real problems faced in communities suffering through de-industrialisation and changes to the structure of modern economies.”

Caroline Lucas, MP for Brighton Pavilion, said he is failing America at a time when its people desperately need a leader.

She said: “He’s surpassed expectation in his disregard for the truth, for climate science, for fundamental rights and for basic dignity and humanity.

“Like Britain, America is in desperate need of a leader that will unite people and give them a better future – but both Trump and Theresa May seem more intent on building walls rather than bridges.”

His proposed state visit to the UK has been hugely controversial with some two million people signing a petition calling for it to be cancelled.

The Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow, has faced calls to resign after he spoke out about the visit.

He said Trump should not be allowed to speak in Parliament because of his prejudiced views.

While many in Westminster have opposed the visit some have said it is important to cement ties with the US – especially given the UK’s exit from the EU.

Former Foreign Secretary William Hague said the Queen would take a state visit “in her stride”, saying she had in the past hosted “tyrants” such as Romania’s former leader Nicolae Ceausescu.

He added that she would cope “effortlessly” with a “brash billionaire from New York”.

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Lord Hague said: “Most of us do not warm to Donald Trump or agree with the policies of his first ten days.

“We can still, however, believe that our Government should be the one he is most likely to listen to, and that Americans of all persuasions are among our closest friends.

“That means that when we ask the president to visit, we don’t rescind the invitation.”

There is no obligation for US Presidents to receive a state visit – in fact they are quite rare.

Barack Obama was offered a state visit 28 months after his inauguration.

Before him, George Bush Junior was invited 32 months after his.

Richard Nixon, George Bush Senior and John F Kennedy all visited the UK but were never offered a state visit.

Lord Ricketts, who was permanent secretary at the Foreign Office from 2006 to 2010, said he was surprised by the invitation of a state visit.

He questioned whether Trump was “deserving of this exceptional honour” and described the invitation as “premature”.

WHAT DOES A STATE VISIT INVOLVE?

A STATE visit is a formal visit by a head of state which is usually at the invitation of the Queen.

Howe ver, the Queen has no say on the matter. She instead takes advice from the Government.

They are usually grand occasions but are not merely ceremonial.

The Government also uses them to cement ties, secure deals and generally further what it sees as Britain’s national interests.

The Queen is the official host for state visits with guests usually either staying at Buckingham Palace or Windsor Castle.

The main event will usually be a state banquet. Before the meal the Queen always makes a speech and toasts the guest. There are also usually speeches at the Houses of Parliament.

The Speaker of the House of Commons is one of three “key holders” to Westminster Hall, and as such, effectively holds a veto over who addresses Parliament.

This is why John Bercow’s comments last months proved so controversial.

Another key component of a state visit sees the Queen and other members of the Royal Family greet visitors on Horse Guards Parade.

The visiting party is invited to inspect a guard of honour before travelling back to Buckingham Palace in a carriage procession escorted by mounted soldiers from the Household Cavalry.

The welcome is accompanied by gun salutes fired from Green Park and the Tower of London.

On average the Queen receives one or two heads of state a year.

Since becoming monarch she has hosted 109 state visits.