A minister also declined to back the BBC against the $1bn (€860m) legal threat by the US president.

Local government minister Alison McGovern, on the morning media round for the government, said the BBC should say sorry to Mr Trump for the splicing together of clips of his speech which made it appear he had told supporters he was going to walk to the US Capitol with them to “fight like hell”, omitting a section about peaceful protest.

The BBC has apologised for the editing but not directly to the US president.

The president can say what he wants. He will do, we know that

Asked if the corporation should apologise to the US president, Ms McGovern said: “If they have made an editorial mistake, then they should apologise.

“The BBC is probably chock-full of policies on what they should do when they make editorial mistakes and I think they should stick to it.”

Earlier, the minister sought to avoid being dragged into the legal showdown between the BBC and Mr Trump.

“The president can say what he wants. He will do, we know that,” she said when asked on Times Radio whether Mr Trump was entitled to sue the BBC.

Outgoing director general of the BBC Tim Davie walks outside BBC Broadcasting House, after he and chief executive of BBC News Deborah Turness resigned following accusations of bias. Photo: Reuters

Outgoing director general of the BBC Tim Davie walks outside BBC Broadcasting House, after he and chief executive of BBC News Deborah Turness resigned following accusations of bias. Photo: Reuters

Today’s News in 90 Seconds – Wednesday, November 12

Pressed on Mr Trump’s lawsuit threat rather than just his words, she added: “That’s for him and the BBC, I’m sure, will respond to whatever happens.”

Mr Starmer has assiduously courted Mr Trump, praising him with flattery, which has delivered some political pay-offs including Britain striking the first trade deal with US to limit the impact of tariffs.

But critics say the British prime minister has failed at times to stand up to the US president, compared to some other world leaders.

As the “fake news” row spiralled, shadow culture secretary Nigel Huddleston suggested the BBC should “grovel”.

“If you look at the complaint he’s got, the Panorama programme, he probably has legitimate claims to say, ‘look, this was wrong and definitely requires and demands an apology’,” he told Times Radio. “So I would advise the BBC to grovel here.”

I think we need to make sure that the BBC invests in quality journalism

However, there were reports that the BBC may refuse to bow to Mr Trump’s demands for damages with questions over whether he would win the case if it went to court.

Ms McGovern also suggested the furore was being overblown.

“The question I have is, has there been bad editing here? Has there been issues?

“If there has, the answer to that is to get better editing. I don’t think we need to have a national meltdown about this.

“I think we need to make sure that the BBC, one of our most trusted media organisations, invests in quality journalism.”

Mr Trump has given the BBC a deadline of Friday to retract “false” and “defamatory” statements made about him or face a $1bn lawsuit.

He threatened legal action after a report from Michael Prescott, a former external adviser to the BBC’s editorial standards committee, raised concerns that a speech Mr Trump had made before the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, had been selectively edited by the BBC.

BBC chairman Samir Shah has apologised for an “error of judgment” and two of the corporation’s most senior figures, chief executive of BBC News Deborah Turness and director-general Tim Davie, resigned.

Critics said the Panorama edit was misleading and removed a section where Mr Trump said he wanted supporters to demonstrate peacefully.

A BBC spokesperson said: “We will review and respond directly in due course.”

Mr Trump has a history of suing news organisations

Mr Trump’s lawyer adds: “Failure to comply will leave president Trump with no choice but to pursue any and all legal rights and remedies available to recover damages for the overwhelming financial and reputational harm that the BBC has caused him to suffer.”

The White House may also consider restricting the corporation’s access to “open press events” as a result of the edit, according to a senior official quoted in the Telegraph.

Mr Trump has a history of suing news organisations in the US and previously settled a defamation case against ABC News after star anchor George Stephanopoulos falsely said he had been found “liable for rape”.

Mr Trump also settled with CBS News over an interview it broadcast on its 60 Minutes programme with former vice president Kamala Harris.

He is currently engaged in legal action with the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal.

Mr Trump has also taken action against the Associated Press after the wire service refused to call the Gulf of Mexico by his preferred name for it: the Gulf of America.