Trump says Johnson and Farage would be 'terrific' together but Corbyn would be 'so bad' for UK

US president intervenes in UK election in Nigel Farage interview on LBC radio

Donald Trump has intervened in Britain's general election, praising Boris Johnson and warning that Jeremy Corbyn would be bad for Britain. In an interview with Nigel Farage on LBC radio, Mr Trump urged the Brexit party leader to work with the prime minister.

“I’d like to see you and Boris get together. Because you would really have some numbers, because you did fantastically in the last election,” he said.

“He’s a fantastic man, and I think he’s the exact right guy for the time. I know that you and him will end up doing something terrific, if you and he get together.”

But the president criticised Mr Johnson's Brexit deal, saying that aspects of it would prevent Britain from securing a trade deal with the United States. And he said Mr Corbyn would take Britain in the wrong direction if he wins December's general election.

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“Corbyn would be so bad for your country, he’s be so bad, he’d take you in such a bad way. He’d take you into such bad places,” he said.

Earlier, Mr Corbyn accused the Conservatives of putting the National Health Service (NHS) on the table as part of a trade deal with Mr Trump.

"Boris Johnson's planned trade deal with Trump will mean yet more NHS money taken away from patients and handed to shareholders. Despite his denials, the NHS is up for grabs by US corporations in a one-sided Trump trade sell-out," he said.

Radical campaign

Promising the most ambitious and radical campaign Britain has ever seen, Mr Corbyn said Labour would invest in public services, provide free home care for the elderly and ensure that the super-rich pay more tax.

Speaking at the launch of his party's campaign, Mr Corbyn said he would reopen negotiations with the European Union and seek to keep Britain in the customs union before putting his deal to a referendum within six months of taking office.

“We need to take it out of the hands of the politicians and trust the people to have the final say. Labour will get Brexit sorted within six months. We’ll let the people decide whether to leave with a sensible deal or remain. That really isn’t complicated,” he said.

“We will carry out whatever the people decide so that we can get on with delivering the real change Britain needs after years of Conservative cuts to vital services and tax handouts to the richest.”

Mr Johnson said a Conservative government would take Britain out of the EU at the end of January and he blamed those opposed to Brexit for his failure to deliver it by October 31st.

“If you vote for us and we get our programme through – which we will because it’s oven ready, it’s there to go – then we can be out at the absolute latest by January next year,” he said.

Mr Johnson was speaking during a visit to Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge, where he faced boos as he left. The prime minister has promised to spend tens of billions of pounds to build more hospitals and hire more doctors and nurses.

Denis Staunton

Denis Staunton

Denis Staunton is China Correspondent of The Irish Times