The French attack the Brexit British, hours after Macron enjoys British hospitality

‘We won’t give in to the British,’ says French Europe Minister live on air,
after her boss’ day with Boris & Prince Charles

“Teek-tock” from Michel Barnier, yet France’s new Europe Minister now wants to stop the clock

Brexit Facts4EU.Org reports on what the French government really thinks

Yesterday, on the morning after French President Emmanuel Macron was in London being given a Royal welcome by Prince Charles and a Prime Ministerial welcome by Boris Johnson, President Macron’s Secretary of State for European Affairs was attacking the British live on French radio.

On Friday, just after her boss had spent a day enjoying British hospitality, France’s European Minister, Amélie de Montchalin, launched another assault on the British over Brexit.

Speaking in a live interview on France’s “Europe 1” radio station she accused the UK of exerting time pressure and expecting the EU to yield to it. She also implied that the UK would not survive a second Coronavirus wave without being under the protection of the EU.

Brexit Facts4EU.Org Summary

Excerpts from interview with France’s Secretary of State for European Affairs, 19 June 2020

“We will not give in to this time pressure, to this final sprint that the British want to impose on us, hoping that we will yield”
“We want to protect our businesses, our fishermen, our farmers”
“Those who most need an agreement are the British”

‘UK won’t bear second wave of Coronavirus without the EU,’ claims Amélie de Montchalin

“They cannot bear a second shock after the epidemic”
“They will not have access to the safety net that is Europe, nor to the recovery plan”
Asked about a no deal outcome she said: “I don't exclude anything”

French Minister complains about what British people have had to endure for years

The French media led with Mme de Montchalin’s comments about the UK side putting the EU under time pressure, and saying that the French would not submit.

In the last four years the British people have endured a blitz from Mme de Montchalin’s fellow countryman Michel Barnier – as well as from various EU Commission, EU Council, and EU Parliament officials - putting pressure on the UK about the time left to agree the details of the UK’s withdrawal and future trading relationship.

Just a few examples, only from Monsieur Barnier, EU Chief Brexit Negotiator:-

“I'm not hearing any whistling, just the clock ticking” – 11 Jul,2017, Brussels
“The Brexit clock is ticking” – 08 Nov 2018, Helsinki
“The timeframe is hugely challenging. A new clock is ticking” – 09 Jan 2020, Stockholm
“Right now though, the consequence of the United Kingdom's decision is that the clock is ticking” – 24 Apr 2020, Brussels

France’s official government diplomatic site includes ‘Boris blackmail’ allegations

Broadly, the French equivalent of the United Kingdom’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office is the ‘Ministère de l'Europe et des Affaires étrangères’. Being a europhile government, France has an equivalent of Dominic Raab (UK Foreign Secretary) in Yves Le Drian, and a Secretary of State for European Affairs in Amélie de Montchalin, who has just three years of French parliamentary experience.

Following some Brexit Facts4EU.Org research we can reveal that France’s new Secretary of State for European Affairs has form.

In January, France’s official government ‘Foreign Office’ website, for which Mme de Montchalin has responsibility, published another interview with her. This has been on their website for five months, so it cannot be considered to be an error.

In this interview – on the official French government diplomatic website – the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is accused of blackmail. Below is part of this exchange:-

From the French Government's official "Diplomacy" website

Q. – “Your issue of the moment is, of course, Brexit, which becomes reality on Friday, although a year-long transition period is beginning. You now need to negotiate, at European level, a trade agreement with the UK. But the British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, seems to be using blackmail…. How do you talk to such a partner?”

And what was the French Secretary of State’s response?

“…I personally won’t be engaging in blackmail…”

Q. – “And you won’t give in to Boris Johnson’s blackmail?”

THE MINISTER – “No, I think this is a period chosen by the British; they chose to leave the European Union politically.”

NOTE: This interview was approved for publication by the French foreign ministry, as well as the French Embassy in London.

Observations

One is almost tempted to start these observations with the words: “Only the French could…” That would be unfair, however. Over the years we have found many similar insults from the EU Commission, EU Council, and EU Parliament.

It is somewhat astonishing, however, for France’s Secretary of State - Macron’s Europe Minister – to attack the British only hours after he was enjoying British hospitality in London, courtesy of Boris Johnson and HRH The Prince of Wales. President Macron’s popularity is extremely low in France right now so he needed a PR boost, which he got.

Mme de Montchalin was appointed in April last year, after the previous incumbent of her role, Nathalie Loiseau, was given the bird by President Emmanuel Macron. (A little amusement for our French-speaking readers.)

Perhaps we should admire the sheer gall (yes, we know) of a senior French minister complaining that the UK is doing something for which the EU’s French Chief Negotiator has been guilty of for years.

This article is original and unique. If we stopped, who would write things like this? Would the BBC, Sky, or ITN cover it? We don’t think so.

If you support freedom of speech and a fully-free and independent United Kingdom, please step up today and send us a donation – no matter how small. We rely 100% on ordinary readers like you. Unlike the Remain side we do not have billionaires supporting us. Quick and secure donation methods are below. You will receive a warm ‘thank you’ email from a member of our team.

[ Sources: Europe 1 | official French diplomatic website | EU Commission | EU Council | EU Parliament ] Politicians and journalists can contact us for details, as ever.

Brexit Facts4EU.Org, Sat 20 June 2020

Click here to go to our news headlines

And please scroll down to COMMENT on the above article.

Something to say about this? Scroll down for reader comments

Since before the EU Referendum, Brexit Facts4EU.Org
has been the most prolific researcher and publisher of Brexit facts in the world.

Supported by MPs, MEPs, & other groups, our work has impact.

We think facts matter. Please donate today, so that we can continue to ensure a clean Brexit is finally delivered.

Any credit card user

Quick One-off

From £5 - £1,000

Monthly

From £3 per month

Paypal Users Only - Choose amount first

Quick One-off

Monthly

PLEASE NOTE IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO COMMENT : You can write your comment under any existing comments below. After you have clicked to preview your comment, you MUST then click on the CAPTCHA system and send you comment, for it to be published. Thank you!

Reader Comments 39

21. Concerned , Saturday, June 20, 2020, 14:59:

3. J Slater - I so agree with you over this. The British fishing industry has been very ill-treated and almost annihilated by the stupidity of the EU and I have to say our pathetic political class who daren't say boo to a chocolate teapot.
So now the French fleet may have the same contraction and little Macron is all up in arms and trying to force Boris's hand along with Charlie Boy. I don't trust the establishment or the royals one little bit. However even as they are Labour, Momentum, Communists, Greens, Liberals - my God Bezmenov was correct on how to destroy a country from within.
They almost have won. Boris better keep to his promises, Brexit - no deal if one cannot be made by 30th June - or the communists will win and England is finished. The choice is that stark.

22. JonL , Saturday, June 20, 2020, 16:39:

In other news, the UK Government just published its strategy document for its negotiations with Australia for a new FTA. And no, it isn't some mutual exchange of threats. In fact, the entire thing is all about cooperation. It's about removing barriers to trade, making trade easier, reducing tariffs, reducing costs and increasing business. As with any other FTA there is a conflict resolution mechanism, and that is cooperative as well with the government committing to assist in resolving disagreements. There isn't a word about our Courts controlling their actions or vice-versa, and we aren't looking down our noses with a lot of snooty boasts about the superiority of our principles. When two countries really want an agreement, they just crack on and do it. Amazing, really.

23. Derek Lund , Saturday, June 20, 2020, 21:20:

Don’t misunderstand me. I’m an ardent Brexiteer too and would much prefer to leave on WTO. But watch the jingoism you lot. Only get into a fight once you know you can win.
-
Comments 1 and 3 re fisheries and comment 10 re capitulation; The French etc. won’t just give up their fishing rights with a mere whimper. Also, remember that we lost the cod war to Iceland in 1976 despite deploying warships.
-
Comment 16 re French having no fight; The French fought bravely but had no answer to the blitzkrieg tactics. Our lot didn’t do all that well either, although the rearguard action at Dunkerque was splendid. The evacuation was a lucky break and it was only the English Channel that saved us to fight another day. Do you seriously think that we could achieve anything like that now? We’re too busy defacing the Cenotaph, burning the Union Jack and ushering illegal migrants in their RIBs into Dover harbour. Hands up those patriots who are willing to fight for their country.
-
If we are to successfully and peacefully defend our fisheries we need to muster such a lethal, defensive force that no one would even consider invading our waters. Unfortunately our navy is such a joke that France etc. will try it on and our people and theirs will get hurt in a series of indecisive scuffles. So badger your MP to beef up the navy and let’s get those shipyards humming with activity again.

24. JonL , Sunday, June 21, 2020, 01:55:

A straw-man argument is one that contradicts something that no-one has said, and no-one here has suggested military action.
More worryingly, fretting over absurd stuff can lead to missing what really is a danger. One example is Northern Ireland. In May's original deal, Northern Ireland was due to remain in the Single Market, one reason her deal did not pass, but under Johnson's changes, the whole of the UK left the Single Market together, yet the geography left us with an anomaly. This was resolved by making the legal border the land border between North and South but protecting that border from hardening by collecting customs dues on goods going from the rest of the UK to Northern Ireland that then *could* enter the Republic, and eventually refunding the duties paid if they never did. This was widely seen as a reasonable solution. If goods to Northern Ireland ended up in the ROI they were exports to the EU, otherwise not.
What has happened recently is quite startling. According to the Irish Times June 18th, Barnier is now demanding that goods moving *from* Northern Ireland *to* the rest of the UK must have a exit declaration that is forwarded to the EU. Since these are goods that are not entering the EU and are moving from one part of the UK to another, he is asking us to account to the EU as if we were exporting goods to ourselves. If we fall for it, this is yet another attempt to keep EU jurisdiction in Northern Ireland, since of course the EU would have to say what the documentation would look like, and would have to be able to check physically that such an exit declaration had been made when required. This is real infringement of UK sovereignty, even though the EU is attempting to carry it out by peaceful means.

25. One eyed king , Sunday, June 21, 2020, 07:29:

We know that no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it
George Orwell

26. Boris Johnson , Sunday, June 21, 2020, 08:17:

So glad we are leaving the gangster mob EU. WTO for me.

27. Derek Lund , Sunday, June 21, 2020, 17:32:

Hi JonL. I assume the first few lines of your comment were in response to mine. Yes, of course I agree that no one here has advocated military action but nevertheless there has been too much jingoism across the board and not just in response to this particular topic. I would single out comment 16 which contains the words “Typical French all mouth as usual and no fight. Just ask the Germans in 1914 and 1940”.
I too don’t advocate military action but I do advocate deterrence in the matter of the fishing disputes that are to come. There are many European fishing vessel captains who are going to become economic victims and who will be rather cross to put it mildly. The scallop “war” in August 2018 was waged over fishing rights in the relatively small Bay of Seine non-British sea area. Fortunately, no one was seriously hurt. Imagine the risk to life if this were multiplied several fold after 1 January 2021.
Events might prove my comments to be, as you said, “fretting about absurd stuff”; let’s hope you’re right.

28. JonL , Sunday, June 21, 2020, 17:57:

There are two possible issues. One is an EU assertion of jurisdiction over UK coastal waters, which is something we could negligently concede to them if we get our negotiations wrong, and which they could then go on to leverage into jurisdiction over other UK resources. If you concede EU jurisdiction over your coastal waters, can you then deny their right to police alleged pollution by your on-shore industry, or to regulate movements of container ships to and from your ports, or to regulate working conditions in your maritime industries - the whole "ratchet" strategy we have seen so many times.
The other is a "scallop war" which is a scuffle between fishermen.
You have to get the legal basis right first, and then you can call the police to deal with scuffles. That is, your own police, not the EU police.

29. L Jones , Sunday, June 21, 2020, 19:20:

Comment 23: ''... our navy is such a joke..''
What ignorant, uninformed and insulting TRIPE.
There's plenty more in your narrow-minded comment that ought to be challenged - but you really don't seem worth the effort.

30. Colin Wynter QC , Monday, June 22, 2020, 04:41:

Be kind, folks. She was only doing her typically misjudged best. The French both love and resent the UK and it irks them that we have the confidence and the bloody mindness to leave the club devised by them out of their need to embrace Germany so tightly as to prevent it from doing what it has done three times in a hundred years. It is the panicked reaction of the spurned lover who knows that, with the departure of its alpha stallion, its influence in the world and its ability to constrain Germany - an existential requirement for the French - will be diminished. France fears a loss of "amour propre"; so she lashes out wildly, infuriated by the insouciance of the Brexit voting core of Britain.

39 comments, page 3 of 4

Add comment:

Please note: Your email address is never published unless you choose to enter it.