Keir Starmer rejects claims Joe Biden is senile

Asked that an increasing number of people were implying that President Biden is senile, Sir Keir answered “no”, and praised the president’s understanding during their bilateral meeting.

Sir Keir said Mr Biden had been “across all the detail”, adding that they had “gone at pace through a number of the issues”.

“We covered a lot of ground – strategic ground, international stuff, not just Ukraine.

“He was on good form.”

Sir Keir said the visit was an opportunity to “be clear about the special relationship and about our long-standing commitment to Nato”.

Nato – the military alliance made up of 32 European and North American countries – expects its members to spend at least 2% of national income on defence.

The new Labour government has said it aims to increase the UK’s spending to 2.5%, however has not set a date for hitting the target.

The Conservatives have said failure to set out a timetable would “cast serious doubt” on the government’s commitment to security.