Trump: 'I'll sue Bbc, we could ask for as much as $5 billion'

US President Donald Trump has said he will take legal action against the BBC for the way the 'Panorama' programme edited his speech, after the company apologised but refused to compensate him.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said: 'We're going to sue for between $1 billion and $5 billion, probably next week'. On Thursday, the BBC claimed that the editing of the 6 January 2021 speech had unintentionally given 'the mistaken impression that President Trump had made a direct appeal for violent action' and said it would no longer be broadcast.

The company apologised to the president, but said it would not pay any financial compensation. The broadcaster made this statement after Trump's lawyers threatened to sue, demanding $1 billion in damages if the company did not retract, apologise and pay compensation.

"I think I have to," Trump told reporters about his plan to take legal action. "They cheated. They changed the words coming out of my mouth." Shortly before boarding the plane, the US president had said, "If you don't do it, you can't stop it from happening again to other people," and had called the change "heinous" and "worse than the Kamala issue", referring to a dispute he had with CBS over an interview on the 60 Minutes programme with his 2024 election opponent Kamala Harris.