Jacob Rees-Mogg had a private meeting with former Donald Trump adviser Steve Bannon in London on Thursday to talk about how conservative movements can win in the US and UK, the Guardian has learned.

Rees-Mogg, a favourite among Conservative members to be the next party leader, spent more than an hour at the meeting in a Mayfair hotel with Bannon, who was at one point seen as Trump’s most influential adviser.

The American also met Nigel Farage, the former Ukip leader, and another Conservative MP during a short trip to the UK.



The meetings took place on the day of the diplomatic spat between Trump and Theresa May, after the US president retweeted anti-Muslim material from the far-right fringe group Britain First.



Rees-Mogg confirmed the encounter, saying Bannon was “an interesting man to have met” and they talked about US and UK politics. Farage also confirmed he had met Bannon, who is a friend.

Bannon, who describes himself as a populist and economic nationalist, was forced out of the White House in August. He then rejoined the rightwing news website Breitbart as executive chairman, but he remains in close contact with Trump.

Steve Bannon, who also met Nigel Farage. Photograph: Mary Schwalm/AP

The meetings were brokered by Raheem Kassam, the Breitbart London editor and former chief of staff to Farage. Kassam defended Trump over the retweets on Thursday and criticised Downing Street for “flushing the UK’s relationship with the US down the toilet to virtue-signal over a couple of tweets”.

Asked about the meetings, Kassam said: “Brexit and the election of President Trump were inextricably linked, so the discussions focused on how we move forward with winning for the conservative movements on both sides of the pond, how you build movements, on the ground and digitally, and what Steve’s brand of economic nationalism – which puts the interests of ordinary people first – can do in the US and United Kingdom.”

Rees-Mogg’s “Moggmentum” followers have attracted comparisons with the US Tea Party as they champion rightwing ideas, grassroots activism and shaking up the conservative establishment.

The Tory MP has previously expressed support for Trump but backtracked on that before the presidential election. In mid-September last year, he said that he would “almost certainly vote for Trump if I was American”.

However, a month later, Rees-Mogg said he felt he could not vote for either candidate. “I obviously do not have a vote and believe it is important for the UK to be polite about all US presidential candidates as it is the most important foreign relationship for us,” he said at the time. “However, I could not personally vote for either candidate so would have to abstain.”

Since the election, Rees-Mogg has developed a substantial following among Tory activists looking for their own populist leader to take on Labour’s Jeremy Corbyn.

He received a hero’s welcome among the grassroots at the Conservative party conference, but he has repeatedly dodged questions about running for Tory leader in the future.

He has also attracted opposition from protesters over his rightwing views on issues such as abortion and foreign aid.