The Parliament of the United Kingdom has scheduled a debate that is to be held on January 18 regarding whether or not US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump should be banned from entering the UK. The reason for the Parliament to take on this topic includes an online citizen’s petition filed on December 8 which quickly gained 571,817 signatures. A month later, as of January 8, it gained well above the 100,000 signatures minimum required for a petition to be considered for debate. Although banning one individual from a union of countries may seem outlandish, the UK does have a history of banning people from entering its borders for “hateful speech”. According to this website, the UK has banned people for “unacceptable behavior” in the past, including celebrities like Martha Stewart, Chris Brown, and Mike Tyson.

This petition to ban Trump from the UK began after the Trump campaign issued a written statement proposing a temporary ban on Muslims migrating into the United States. Trump has received a tremendous amount of backlash for his proposal, including some from his own fellow US Republican presidential candidates . Presidential candidate Jeb Bush tweeted his criticism of Trump, calling him “unhinged.”

Jeb Bush

✔@JebBush

Donald Trump is unhinged. His “policy” proposals are not serious.

5:18 PM – 7 Dec 2015

•  3,6503,650 Retweets
•  4,3654,365 likes

A serious outcome that has to be considered during the debate includes how Trump owns a golf course in Aberdeen, Scotland, a country within the UK. He has threatened to cancel  the $1 billion he has invested on his golf course if he is banned from entering the territory.

The Trump Organization has stated that banning Trump would send “a terrible message to the world” and would show that the UK “has no interest in attracting inward investment.”

Citizens of the UK aren’t the only ones who are calling for a ban on Trump. A Scottish politician called for a ban on Trump’s two golf courses in the country. There is even a separate petition to ban Trump from entering Germany that has gained over 35,000 signatures. If any of these bans are put into effect it could hurt Trump’s campaign and reflect negatively on the US if he is elected president.

For more insight on the British perspective of this issue, visit Should Donald Trump be barred from UK? BBC News.

To learn more about Donald Trump, visit donaldjtrump.com.
or follow his twitter @therealDonaldJTrump.