Building bridges No 10 believes there can be special relationship

While Kemi Badenoch was the first politician after the US election result to publicly challenge Keir Starmer over Labour's previously tense relationship with Donald Trump, she is unlikely to be the last.

- Pippa Crerar

Yet the prime minister, according to government sources, is less anxious about the return of Trump to the White House than the new Tory leader, and many in his own party, may have assumed.

It is true Starmer may have found a more natural ally in Kamala Harris, but Starmer's team has spent years preparing for a possible Republican victory - building relationships and bridges.

"We're more relaxed [with the result] than people might think," one senior official said. "Keir has already had a couple of conversations with Trump and they went very well. Trump likes winners and he sees Keir as someone who 'won big'."

As the election approached, the government became increasingly convinced Trump would win. "We had worried the Dems did not have enough of an economic offer to get Kamala over the line," a source said.

Downing Street had game-planned a series of outcomes. They were even ready for a scenario in which Trump declared himself the victor even though the race was too close to call.

As it turned out, his win was clear cut, and Starmer was able to be straight out of the blocks yesterday with a message of congratulations.

"We stand shoulder to shoulder in defence of our shared values of freedom, democracy and enterprise," he wrote. "I know the special relationship will continue to prosper on both sides of the Atlantic for years to come."

In opposition, several senior Labour MPs had vociferously criticised Trump, including David Lammy, now the foreign secretary, who labelled him a "neo-Nazi sympathizing sociopath" and "a racist KKK and Nazi sympathizer".

But when it became clear that Trump was going to run again, Starmer instructed his aides to start repairing relations. "We all knew this election was coming. Courting of both sides has been going on for a long time," one insider said.