President Trump signs first orders in Oval Office... with Sir Winston Churchill bust back in pride of place

Chloe Chaplain21 January 2017

The bust of Sir Winston Churchill could be seen back in pride of place in the White House's Oval Office as President Trump signed his first orders.

In a nod to the "special relationship" between Britain and the United States, newly-elected Donald Trump appeared to make good on an agreement to return the statue of the wartime leader to the famous office within hours of being sworn in.

The former British prime minister's renewed presence was noticed as Mr Trump signed his first papers as the 45th president of the United States.

In his first official state act, Mr Trump took steps to weaken his predecessor’s health reform, signing an order seeing the “prompt repeal” of Obamacare.

Oval Office: The bust of the former British Prime Minister could be seen in pride of place
EPA

The sculpture of Churchill's face is said to be a replica of one given to 1960s leader Lyndon B Johnson and first appeared in the Oval Office during former George W Bush's administration.

However it was replaced by a bust of civil rights champion Martin Luther King Jr during Barack Obama's presidency.

Reports of Churchill's removal prompted protests from British figures including Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, who in turn was criticised when he blamed the swap on Mr Obama's "ancestral dislike of the British empire".

State duties: President Trump signs his first executive order ordering federal agencies to ease the burden of former President Obama's Affordable Care Act
EPA

He explained at the time: "When I was elected as president of the United States, my predecessor had kept a Churchill bust in the oval office.

"There are only so many tables where you can put busts otherwise it starts looking a little cluttered.

"And I thought it was appropriate and I suspect that most people here in the United Kingdom might agree, that as the first African-American president, it might be appropriate to have a bust of Dr Martin Luther King in my office to remind me of all the hard work of a lot of people who would somehow allow me to have the privilege of holding this office."

After meeting Mr Trump in November, former Ukip leader Nigel Farage said he was "especially pleased at his very positive reaction to the idea that Sir Winston Churchill's bust should be put back in the Oval Office".

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