Donald Trump is 'not avoiding anything' on London trip, ambassador insists as president accused of dodging protesters

'The president is merely trying to get as impactful a trip as he can get in a 24-hour period,' says Woody Johnson

Donald Trump is expected to hit the golf course in Scotland (AP)

Donald Trump's British trip has not been designed to keep the US president away from protestors, America’s ambassador to the UK has claimed.

The US president is hardly spending any time in the capital during his four-day trip next week.

He will meet Theresa May at her country residence Chequers and the Queen at Windsor Castle before heading to Scotland, where he is expected to hit the golf course.

Woody Johnson said Mr Trump was simply trying to get as much impact as possible from his 24 hours in England on what he described as a "very important" visit on which he said the president would use to strengthen the trans-Atlantic special relationship.

The US leader is expected to move between locations by helicopter, rather than taking motorcades which might attract demonstrations.

Briefing reporters on a conference call from the US Embassy in London, Mr Johnson played down the influence on the planning of Mr Trump's visit of the expected demonstrations, which will include a giant inflatable effigy of the president in a baby's nappy floating above Parliament.

"I think we are all aware of these things but the president is focused on what his objectives are," Mr Johnson said. "He appreciates free speech, both in this country and in our country. It is one of the things that bind us together.

"The president is not avoiding anything. The president is merely trying to get as impactful a trip as he can get in a 24-hour period."

Mr Johnson denied that Mr Trump was avoiding London, where the biggest protests are expected to take place, pointing out that he was using the ambassador's residence in Regent's Park as his base for the visit and will stay there overnight on Thursday.

He declined to confirm whether Mr Trump would play golf in Scotland - where he owns two courses - stressing that the weekend would be dominated by preparations for his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki.

Mr Johnson said trade would be high on the agenda for bilateral talks between Mr Trump and Mrs May at Chequers.

"The president has been clear right from the beginning of his term," he said. "He said he would love to do a bilateral trade deal. He is really ready to step up on that the minute we get the go-ahead to do it. And he will get it done fast, because I know it is a major priority for him."

He said that Mr Trump and Mrs May have "a good relationship" and would discuss a wide range of topics at Chequers.

The UK was an "indispensable" ally to the US and the special relationship was "as strong now as it's ever been", he said.

The black-tie dinner being held for Mr Trump at Blenheim Palace on the first night of his visit was "very symbolic".

The Oxfordshire country house was the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill, who was "passionate" about the bond between the US and UK and coined the phrase "special relationship", he said.

Mr Johnson said: "The president knows how important the special relationship is first hand and that is why the bust of Churchill is actually in the Oval Office as we speak. It's not an accident. He knows that he has an opportunity to make this special relationship even stronger.

"The UK is very preoccupied right now with Brexit, there's a lot of debate about the pros and cons. But as Americans, we always look at where the opportunities are. Britain has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to change direction and I am very confident, whichever way this goes, that Britain will make a success of Brexit and whatever else it does in the future."

Agencies contributed to this report