Donald Trump’s new attorney general will not recuse himself from oversight of Robert Mueller‘s investigation into alleged Russian collusion with the 2016 presidential campaign, the Justice Department has announced.

Officials advised William Barr against the step, spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said on Tuesday, and Mr Barr made a decision “consistent with that advice”.

Mr Barr has tried to allay fears raised by Democrats that he might disrupt Mr Mueller’s work.

During his confirmation hearing in January, he downplayed a memo he had sent to Justice Department and White House lawyers in which he criticised the investigation for its presumed enquiries into whether Mr Trump had obstructed justice.

Trump's inner circle: Meet the members of the US president's cabinet Show all 20 1 /20 Trump's inner circle: Meet the members of the US president'scabinet Trump's inner circle: Meet the members of the US president's cabinet Donald Trump's Cabinet Donald Trump's Cabinet is one the richest in American history, filled with billionaires, conservatives and several career politicians. AFP/Getty Trump's inner circle: Meet the members of the US president's cabinet Mike Pence US Vice President Mike Pence has defended Donald Trump throughout his presidency while walking a fine line to avoid any public involvement in major scandals. AFP/Getty Trump's inner circle: Meet the members of the US president's cabinet Mike Pompeo Secretary of State Mike Pompeo replaced Donald Trump's previous appointment to the post, Rex Tillerson, and has led talks with North Korea in establishing high-profile summits between the president and Kim Jong Un. Getty Trump's inner circle: Meet the members of the