Peter Mandelson says he was wrong to call Donald Trump a danger to the world

Lord Peter Mandelson was “wrong” to describe Donald Trump as a “danger to the world”, the incoming British ambassador to the US has said.

In an interview with Fox News, Lord Mandelson retracted comments he made about the US President in 2019, saying Mr Trump had gained “fresh respect” from him.

He said: “I consider my remarks about President Trump as ill-judged and wrong.

“I think times and attitudes towards the President have changed since then.

“I think people have been impressed, not just by the extraordinary second mandate that he has received from the American people, but the dynamism and energy with which he approached not just the campaign but government as well.”

China links

Lord Mandelson was named as the next British ambassador to Washington in December, but following questions about his links to China it was suggested Mr Trump could refuse to accept him.

However, reports on Thursday indicated his appointment was now expected to be confirmed.

In his interview with Fox News, Lord Mandelson went on to praise Mr Trump, saying he was a “nice person” and a “fair-minded person” who could become “one of the most consequential American presidents I have known in my adult life”.

He added: “I think that with the approach he is taking to government, which frankly just seems to us in Britain so much more organised, it’s so much more coherent, he seems to be so much more clear in what he wants to do, we take encouragement from that, that gives us greater confidence.”

Build bridges

The incoming ambassador’s intervention comes as the Government attempts to build bridges with the Trump administration and exempt British goods from the global tariffs the new president has threatened to impose.

In her speech on Wednesday, the Chancellor Rachel Reeves said she would be “guided by one clear principle, above all, to act in the national interest for our economy”, adding: “That means building on our special relationship with the United States under President Trump.”

Earlier in the week, Downing Street said Sir Keir Starmer had had “very good early engagement” with Mr Trump during a 45-minute phone call that touched on trade and the economy.

Meanwhile, Mr Trump has continued to issue a blizzard of executive orders, including bans on transgender people serving in the armed forces, while his Department of Justice said it had sacked lawyers who had worked on criminal investigations into the new president.

The US government was also thrown into chaos on Tuesday following an executive order from Mr Trump that suspended federal funding, with little clarity on what programmes would be affected.

The order has been challenged in the courts, and a judge granted a temporary pause on its implementation late on Tuesday to allow those cases to be heard.