Emmanuel Macron has rejected Theresa May’s plea for help to rescue her Brexit plan, ruling out any compromises that risk the EU “unravelling”.
In his first response to their emergency talks, the French President said he respected the UK’s decision to leave the bloc – but vowed to protect the EU’s “integrity” at all costs.
The comments appear to be a major blow to Ms May’s hopes that the pair’s surprise talks earlier this month could achieve a breakthrough to rescue her beleaguered Chequers proposals.
Significantly, No 10 had refused to say whether any progress had been made, at an island fortress off the French Mediterranean coast – beyond describing it as “a good meeting”.
Speaking to France’s diplomatic corps, Mr Macron showed no sign of breaking ranks – in a speech in which he also lashed out at Donald Trump's “aggressive” isolationism.
“France wants to maintain a strong, special relationship with London but not if the cost is the European Union's unravelling," he told the gathering of ambassadors.
Brexit, Mr Macron said, “is a sovereign choice, which we must respect, but it can't come at the expense of the European Union's integrity”.
Ms May is believed to have issued a “Chequers deal or no deal” message in France, insisting she could not compromise further on the package thrashed out in June, which sparked two cabinet resignations.
She turned to Mr Macron after a firm rejection from Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief negotiator, who ruled out both her customs plans and for the UK to follow EU rules on goods but not services.
Mr Barnier warned that Chequers would “undermine our single market which is one of the EU's biggest achievements” and insisted there would be no rethink.
The government holds out hope that Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor is willing to be more flexible and viewed Mr Macron as the next – and probably toughest – nut to crack.
However, last week, David Lidington, the effective deputy prime minister acknowledged that hopes of a deal by the original deadline of October are fading fast.
Instead, an emergency summit is possible in November – if any progress has been made behind the scenes – or there will be a last-gasp push for an agreement in December.
Brussels has hit back at the UK government, insisting it will not be to blame if the UK crashes out of the EU because its negotiators are working “day and night, 24/7, for a deal”.
Meanwhile, the government says it is stepping up preparations for crashing out of the EU without a deal, despite open clashes between cabinet ministers over the economic damage.
Philip Hammond, the Chancellor, has reiterated the Treasury’s warning of a 7.7 per cent hit to GDP and an £80bn black hole in the public finances, under a no deal exit.
But Dominic Raab, the Brexit Secretary, dismissed those fears, insisting most such predictions “proved to be wrong”.
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