A meeting between Home Secretary Priti Patel and her French counterpart Gerald Darmanin has been dramatically cancelled following Boris Johnson’s latest intervention in the migrant crisis.
A public letter sent by the Prime Minister to President Emmanuel Macron was described as “unacceptable” by the French Interior Ministry which said Ms Patel was “no longer invited” to the meeting with other European ministers on Sunday.
There was no immediate comment from the Home Office.
In his letter, Mr Johnson said the two countries needed to “go further and faster together” to deal with the crisis, following the sinking of a migrant boat on Wednesday with the loss of 27 lives.
He set out proposals for British border officials to begin patrols on the beaches of northern France as early as next week – something Paris has long resisted.
Ms Patel had been due to visit Calais on Sunday for talks with Mr Darmanin and counterparts from Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany.
Mr Johnson had said he was ready to upgrade this meeting to a full summit of the countries concerned.
French media reported that the Interior Ministry statement said: “We consider the British Prime Minister’s public letter unacceptable and contrary to our discussions between counterparts.
“Therefore, Priti Patel is no longer invited on Sunday to the inter-ministerial meeting whose format will be: France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany and European Commission.”
