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 Trump, who owns two golf courses in Scotland which he visited
earlier this year, called for a complete shutdown of Muslims
entering the United States "until our country's representatives can
figure out what is going on," following last week's deadly shooting
spree in California by two Muslims.
"The UK has banned entry to many individuals for hate speech," the
text of the British petition said.
"If the United Kingdom is to continue applying the 'unacceptable
behavior' criteria to those who wish to enter its borders, it must
be fairly applied to the rich as well as poor, and the weak as well
as powerful."
Britain's interior ministry has the power to ban people from
entering the country if they have engaged in what the government
determines to be unacceptable behavior. In the past people have been
banned for fostering hatred that might provoke inter-community
violence.
Asked by reporters on Wednesday whether she would consider banning
Trump, Home Secretary Theresa May merely said it was important for
politicians to ensure "cohesion among communities rather than
division".
U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, who gave a speech in London
alongside May, said she could not comment on Trump's remarks or
whether his policy would be legal. However, she said entry to the
United States was based on specific criteria and whether someone was
legally entitled to be there.
"We do try and focus more on what people do as opposed to the
inimitable characteristic of who they are," Lynch told reporters.
"I'm sure there will be a lot of ink spilled on this in the days to
come. What I would say is when it comes to religious tests for
things as important as transiting borders, that that would be
inconsistent with the American values that this administration is
trying to uphold."
The petition was launched by Suzanne Kelly, a Scottish-based
campaigner and longtime critic of Trump's latest golf course in
Aberdeenshire.
By midday on Wednesday, it had attracted over 100,000 signatures, a
number which was rising quickly.
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The government responds to all petitions that gain more than 10,000
signatures, and the topic will be considered for a parliamentary
debate if they reach 100,000.
British politicians generally avoid commenting on the political
affairs of other countries but on Tuesday a spokeswoman for Prime
Minister David Cameron said Cameron thought Trump's comments were
"divisive, unhelpful and quite simply wrong".
In seeking to defend his proposal, Trump said the United states
needed to be vigilant because parts of London and Paris were now so
radicalized they could no longer be policed by officers who feared
for their lives.
London's Metropolitan Police took the rare stance of criticizing
Trump while London Mayor Boris Johnson said: "the only reason I
wouldn't go to some parts of New York is the real risk of meeting
Donald Trump."
The police said: "We would not normally dignify such comments with a
response, however on this occasion we think it's important to state
to Londoners that Mr Trump could not be more wrong."
Britain has an estimated 2.7 million Muslims among its 65 million
population. Earlier this year, the government said fighting
extremism was one of the defining battles of this century and
announced a strategy primarily designed to counter the ideology
promoted by Islamic State militants, al Qaeda and other radical
Islamists.
(Reporting by William James and Kate Holton; Editing by Toby Chopra)
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