The ABC has been excluded from attending Donald Trump’s press conference near London this week, days after a public clash between the broadcaster’s Americas editor, John Lyons, and the president in Washington DC over his business dealings.
Both Downing Street and the Foreign Press Association (FPA) in the UK, which liaises with overseas reporters and broadcasters, said Australia’s national broadcaster had not been targeted, but rather was moved to an overflow room along with other international outlets due to space constraints.
The Australian broadcaster said earlier on Thursday its London bureau was informed by Downing Street that its accreditation to attend the press conference had been withdrawn for “logistical reasons”.
Trump was due to have lunch with the British prime minister, Keir Starmer, at the latter’s country retreat of Chequers before Thursday’s joint press conference.
“The ABC’s London bureau is still accredited to attend Chequers, however, Downing Street media has said it no longer has a spot at the joint press conference due to logistical reasons,” an ABC spokesperson told the Guardian.
“We have been given no indication this is connected to the questions put to President Trump by ABC Americas editor John Lyons earlier this week.”
Downing Street initially declined to comment.
But UK officials subsequently said any suggestion that there was a link to questions previously put to Trump was “entirely untrue”.
Officials said a decision was made on Monday to move the press conference indoors with reduced capacity. Ten of 15 overseas journalists originally accredited, including the ABC, were moved to an adjacent room, sources said.
The call on which journalists were moved was made by Downing Street after liaising with the FPA. It was based on which organisations held so-called lobby passes for the UK parliament, the Guardian was told.
A government spokesperson said: “Media accreditation for the state visit press conference at Chequers has been limited by capacity, caused by inevitable high demand.”
A senior correspondent for Al Jazeera English, Rory Challands, said on X he was told by Downing Street he was being “taken off the Starmer/Trump press conference list for logistical reasons. The weather was mentioned”.
Lyons, who is reporting for Four Corners, drew the ire of the US president on Tuesday when he asked Trump how much wealthier he had become since returning to the Oval Office for his second term in January.
Trump accused the reporter of “hurting Australia” with the line of questioning.
“In my opinion, you are hurting Australia very much right now,” Trump said. “And they want to get along with me.
“You know, your leader is coming over to see me very soon. I’m going to tell him about you. You set a very bad tone. You can set a nicer tone.”
Trump subsequently told Lyons: “Quiet.”
Guardian Australia understands the ABC still has access to the White House.
The Trump administration used an official X account to label Lyons a “foreign fake news loser” alongside a Fox News clip from the Washington press conference.
Lyons has argued he was not asking “particularly hostile questions” when he queried whether it was appropriate for a US president to engage in so many business deals while in office.
He asked: “Is it appropriate, President Trump, that a president in office should be engaged in so much business activity?”
“Well, I’m really not,” Trump replied. “My kids are running the business. You know what the activity – where are you from?”
Australia’s politicians threw their support behind the Washington-based Lyons after Trump said he would tell the Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, about the exchange.
The Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young said Trump was trying to bully the media and Australia and demanded Albanese stand up to criticism of Australian journalists.
The ABC news director, Justin Stevens, said Lyons had the broadcaster’s full support.
“John Lyons is a highly awarded journalist and one of the most experienced and respected reporters in Australia,” Stevens said. “His job is to ask questions.”
