U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House | Michael Reynolds/EPA Donald Trump not welcome at UK parliament, says Speaker John Bercow gets round of applause as he says MPs’ ‘opposition to racism and to sexism’ should be taken into account.

LONDON — Donald Trump should not be allowed to address the U.K. parliament during his state visit later this year, the Speaker of the House of Commons said Monday.

In a rare intervention, John Bercow said MPs’ “opposition to racism and to sexism” and “support for equality and an independent judiciary” were “hugely important considerations.”

The speaker is supposed to take a non-partisan stance on political issues. But responding to a motion tabled by Labour MP Stephen Doughty calling for Trump to be barred from making an address at the Palace of Westminster, Bercow said he was “strongly opposed” to the idea and would not give his consent.

Bercow’s statement will come as an embarrassment to Prime Minister Theresa May, who has faced criticism for inviting Trump to make a state visit to the U.K. so early in his presidency.

Visiting foreign leaders occasionally address MPs and members of the House of Lords. To do so is considered a major honor by U.K. lawmakers, and has in recent years has been offered to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chinese President Xi Jinping, and Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto.

When Barack Obama visited in 2011, he addressed both houses in the 900-year-old Westminster Hall, considered an even higher honor. There had been speculation that Trump would be granted a similar honor, after May confirmed in Washington last month that the president had accepted an invitation to make a state visit to Britain later this year.

Bercow told MPs that as one of three “key holders” to Westminster Hall, he was opposed to an address being hosted there, and would also refuse to add his name to any invitation for Trump to address lawmakers in another potential venue, Parliament’s Royal Gallery.

“We value our relationship with the U.S.” Bercow told the House of Commons. “If a state visit takes place that is way beyond and above the pay grade of the speaker. However, as far as this place is concerned I feel very strongly that our opposition to racism and to sexism and our support for equality before the law and an independent judiciary are hugely important considerations in the House of Commons.”

More than 160 Labour, Scottish National Party, Liberal Democrat and Plaid Cymru MPs signed Doughty’s motion opposing a Trump address. Bercow’s statement to MPs was met with applause from the opposition benches.