The European leaders courting Trump's favour

“Starmer and the Labour Party have been trying to build links to Trump world and now to the Trump administration in waiting,” said Ian Bond of the Centre for European Reform.

“I think you can see the appointment of Peter Mandelson as the next ambassador in that light. Somebody who is the ultimate sort of smooth political operator. Will it work? They're not natural soulmates on a lot of issues. But equally, Trump does seem to have a sort of soft spot for the UK.”