Emmanuel Macron has stated the UK and France have a “shared responsibility” to sort out the “burden” of unlawful migration, as he urged co-operation between London and Paris forward of a crunch summit later this week.
Addressing parliament within the Palace of Westminster on Tuesday, the French president stated the UK-France summit would deliver “cooperation and tangible results” concerning the small boats disaster within the Channel.
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President Macron -who is the primary European chief to be invited on a state go to to the UK since Brexit – informed the viewers that whereas migrants’ “hope for a better life elsewhere is legitimate”, “we cannot allow our countries’ rules for taking in people to be flouted and criminal networks to cynically exploit the hopes of so many individuals with so little respect for human life”.
“France and the UK have a shared responsibility to address irregular migration with humanity, solidarity and fairness,” he added.
Looking forward to the UK-France summit on Thursday, he promised the “best ever co-operation” between France and the UK “to fix today what is a burden for our two countries”.
Sir Keir Starmer will hope to succeed in a take care of his French counterpart on a “one in, one out” migrant returns deal on the key summit on Thursday.
In April, British officers confirmed a pilot scheme was being thought-about to deport migrants who cross the English Channel in alternate for the UK accepting asylum seekers in France with reliable claims.
The 2 international locations have engaged in talks a couple of one-for-one swap, enabling undocumented asylum seekers who’ve reached the UK by small boat to be returned to France.
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Britain would then obtain migrants from France who would have a proper to be within the UK, like those that have already got household settled right here.
The small boats disaster is a urgent challenge for the prime minister, on condition that greater than 20,000 migrants crossed the English Channel to the UK within the first six months of this yr – an increase of virtually 50% on the quantity crossing in 2024.
Picture:
President Macron greets Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle at his deal with to parliament in Westminster.
Elsewhere in his speech, the French president addressed Brexit and stated the UK couldn’t “stay on the sidelines” regardless of its departure from the European Union.
He stated European international locations needed to break free from financial dependence on the US and China.
“Our two countries are among the oldest sovereign nations in Europe, and sovereignty means a lot to both of us, and everything I referred to was about sovereignty, deciding for ourselves, choosing our technologies, our economy, deciding our diplomacy, and deciding the content we want to share and the ideas we want to share, and the controversies we want to share.
“Despite the fact that it’s not a part of the European Union, the UK can not keep on the sidelines as a result of defence and safety, competitiveness, democracy – the very core of our identification – are related throughout Europe as a continent.”
The pair will later lay a wreath on the statue of former French president Charles de Gaulle, earlier than having fun with a state banquet at Windsor Fort with the King.
