US embassy in London faces backlash over $500,000 grant scheme

The Story in Brief

The US embassy in London has announced grants of up to $500,000 for 'public education' initiatives, sparking accusations of interference in British democracy. The programme, titled 'Liberty Under Law: The Shared Anglo-American Tradition', gives priority to projects promoting free speech, limited government and other themes echoed by the pro-Trump Maga movement, according to the Guardian. Critics, including Liberal Democrat MP Lisa Smart, say the language borrows directly from Maga talking points and amounts to meddling. The embassy denies the charge and says the funding is meant to strengthen the US-UK relationship.

The grant scheme is separate from a planned $12 million State Department package for UK organisations founded by Conservatives Jacob Rees-Mogg and Toby Young, details of which were disclosed in leaked US government documents. In an ironic twist, the American Bar Association, whose Magna Carta memorial the grant programme references, is suing the Trump administration over alleged intimidation of lawyers. Legal bodies in Britain have backed the ABA.