French President Emmanuel Macron‘s state visit to Britain turned to politics Wednesday as London was expected to press Paris for new measures to curb undocumented immigration.
The ever-rising number of migrants arriving on England’s southern coast by small boat from northern France has become a major political headache for Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
He is expected to push the French leader to do more to stop the crossings when the two leaders meet over lunch at the prime minister’s 10 Downing Street residence.
London hopes to strike a “one in, one out” deal to send small boat migrants back to the continent, in exchange for the UK accepting asylum seekers in Europe who have a British link, the domestic PA news agency reported.
In parliament Nigel Farage, leader of the anti-immigration Reform UK party — currently riding high in the polls — challenged Starmer to “say to the French president we will not accept undocumented males across the English Channel“.
‘Worrying’ implications of ‘one in, one out’
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There has been mounting frustration in the UK over funding for France to prevent migrants setting off and a law that prevents police intercepting migrant boats while in the water close to shore.
“We will only provide funding that delivers for our priorities,” Starmer told parliament, adding that the UK had persuaded the French “to review their laws and tactics on the north coast to take more effective action”.
“I’ll be discussing this at meetings with President, Macron,” he added.
‘Burden’
After he took power a year ago, Starmer promised to “smash the gangs” getting thousands of migrants onto the small boats, only to see numbers rise to record levels.
More than 21,000 migrants have crossed from northern France to southeast England in rudimentary vessels this year as the far-right soars in popularity.
In a speech to parliament Tuesday, Macron promised to deliver on measures to cut the number of migrants crossing the English Channel, describing the issue as a “burden” to both countries.
He said France and the UK had a “shared responsibility to address irregular migration with humanity, solidarity and fairness”.
Aid to Ukraine, defence and energy deals under spotlight
Discussions between Macron and Starmer on Wednesday are also expected to focus on aid to war-torn Ukraine and bolstering defence spending.
The two countries have been working to create a military force to back Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire between Kyiv and Moscow, and cooperation on trade and defence were themes in Macron’s speech on Tuesday.
Macron and Starmer will attend a meeting with business leaders. France’s Engie said on Wednesday it would invest 1.2 billion euros ($1.41 billion) in energy storage in Britain, following a 1.1 billion pound deal from France’s EDF in a nuclear power project in eastern England.
‘Entente amicale’
The talks at Downing Street come after a first day dominated by pomp and a warm welcome from King Charles III and members of the royal family.
Read moreMacron kicks off ‘historic’ UK state visit to renew ties with King Charles
Tuesday’s royal welcome from King Charles III and his wife Queen Camilla included a horse-drawn carriage procession, a 41-gun salute and a sumptuous banquet at Windsor Castle, west of London, for the president and his wife Brigitte.
The Macrons began the second day of their visit by paying their respects at the tomb of the late Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor’s St George’s Chapel.
Macron then discussed biodiversity issues with the king during a stroll in the castle grounds before he bade farewell to his host and headed to central London.
This is the first state visit by a French president to Britain since Nicolas Sarkozy in 2008 and the first by a European Union head of state since Brexit in 2020.
After Britain’s acrimonious departure from the European Union, the two countries smoothed post-Brexit tensions in 2023 during a state visit by the famously Francophile king and a summit with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in France.
At the state banquet in Macron’s honour, Charles toasted a new UK-France “entente… no longer just cordiale, but now amicale”, prompting Macron to laud “this entente amicale that unites our two fraternal peoples in an unwavering alliance”.
On Wednesday morning, Macron also met entrepreneurs and scientists working on artificial intelligence at Imperial College London.
Later, he will visit the British Museum to formally announce the loan of the famous Bayeux Tapestry depicting the 1066 Norman conquest of England.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP and Reuters)
