Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron meet at No10 for crunch migration talks as PM pushes for 'one in, one out’ deal
French President Emmanuel Macron has arrived at No.10 for crunch migration talks with Sir Keir Starmer, as both leaders look to put an end to the small boat crisis.
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Macron arrived on Tuesday for the first state visit by an EU head of state since Brexit.
It comes as the UK has been pressing for tougher action from the French authorities on the beaches along the Channel coast.
Alongside Wednesday’s Downing Street talks, Sir Keir and President Macron will attend a reception with UK and French businesses and an event at the British Museum later in the evening.
President Macron was all smiles as he arrived at Downing Street, waving as he emerged from his car before being greeted by the Prime Minister.
Read more: King Charles seen with red eye as Palace explains monarch's appearance during Macron state visit
The two leaders shook hands before being joined by their wives for pictures outside the door of No.10.
Sir Keir hopes the French will agree to a “one-in, one-out” migration deal, which will see any person who wrongly enters the UK exchanged with someone who has a valid right to be in the country.
In a speech to MPs and peers on Tuesday, President 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 have a “shared responsibility to address irregular migration with humanity, solidarity and fairness”.
Decisions at a Franco-British summit on Thursday will respond to “our aims for co-operation and tangible results on these major issues”, Macron added.
The French have a Telegraph report that Macron blames the UK for the crisis.
A senior Elysee source said: “The French president looks forward to working with the Prime Minister constructively on this shared priority.”
Last week, the total number of people crossing the Channel in small boats this year passed 20,000.
The total now stands at more than 21,000, a record for this point in the year.
Speaking alongside President Macron on Tuesday, King Charles hailed the deepening bond between the UK and France that he said will protect against “profound challenges” such as terrorism, organised crime and “irregular migration”.
In a speech marking President Emmanuel Macron’s three-day state visit to the UK, the King highlighted a summit between Sir Keir Starmer and the French leader, when commentators expect the issue of small boats to be top of the agenda.
The King also spoke of the growing environmental threat where the “very future of our planet hangs in the balance” and the UK and France have a “critical role to play”.
Charles’s comments were made at a Windsor Castle state banquet where Sir Mick Jagger and fiancée Melanie Hamrick were among the guests alongside Sir Elton John and husband David Furnish and actress Dame Kristin Scott Thomas.
The King told the guests, who included the Queen, the Prince and Princess of Wales, the Prime Minister and senior members of the Cabinet: “Monsieur le President, the summit that you and the Prime Minister will hold in London this week will deepen our alliance and broaden our partnership still further.
“Our armed forces will co-operate even more closely across the world, including to support Ukraine, as we join together in leading a Coalition of the Willing in defence of liberty and freedom from oppression; in other words, in defence of our shared values.”
He went on to say: “Our security services and police will go further still to protect us against the profound challenges of terrorism, organised crime, cyber attacks and of course irregular migration across the English Channel.
“And our businesses will innovate together, generating growth, trade and investment for our economies and across the world.”