Hollande caves in to May on Calais and UK expats

FRANCOIS Hollande last night made two key concessions to Theresa May on UK border controls in Calais and the right of Britons living in France to remain.

But the French president warned the Prime Minister she will not be able to restrict migration if she wants to maintain Britain’s trading relationship with the European Union.

And he demanded an explanation from Mrs May on why she has not already begun formal Brexit negotiations – saying talks should begin ‘the sooner the better’.

His comments were in stark contrast to those made earlier this week by German chancellor Angela Merkel, who said Britain should ‘take a moment’ before starting its withdrawal from the EU.

After the talks in Paris yesterday, Mr Hollande confirmed he would allow Britain to keep border checks in Calais, and said British people residing in France would be able to stay for as long as they want.

But asked if the UK would be allowed to restrict migration from the EU while remaining in the Single Market, Mr Hollande said this was the ‘most crucial point’. ‘It will be a choice facing the UK – remain in the Single Market and then assume the free movement that goes with it or to have another status. That will be the subject of the negotiation,’ he said.

During the referendum campaign, Remain supporter Mrs May said Britain could be forced to remove border checks from French soil if there was a Brexit vote.

But yesterday, Mr Hollande confirmed it is ‘in the interest of both countries’ for them to stay in place.

During a joint press conference, in which the pair at times appeared uncomfortable, Mrs May was forced to laugh off a question about whether Mr Hollande had been a more ‘awkward customer’ than Mrs Merkel.

Shaking her head, she said: ‘We have had excellence discussions, very constructive and very open. I look forward to working with both in the future.’

Ahead of the meeting, Mr Hollande had warned he was unhappy with Mrs May’s assertion she will not trigger Article 50’s two-year exit until early next year, saying: ‘First we spoke of September, then October and now December. There needs to be justifications.’

French newspaper Le Monde yesterday accused Mrs May of seeking to exploit divisions between Mrs Merkel and Mr Hollande over Brexit negotiations. Under the headline ‘Theresa May plays Angela against Francois’, it said the Prime Minister’s visits ‘confirmed her strategy of negotiating with Berlin and Paris, rather than Brussels, playing on the Franco-German disagreements.’

Last night a French diplomatic source said they did not want Britain to be given the option of a bespoke EU deal.

Instead officials want the UK to take an ‘off the peg’ trading pact based on the EU’s existing arrangements with countries such as Switzerland or Norway, which both accept freedom of movement. The source said: ‘The UK cannot say: “This is what interests me in relation to the EU and this is what I don’t want, and thus let’s try and configure a new deal”. That’s just not possible. They will have to choose between the different options that exist.’

And yesterday Pascal Lamy, the former director general of the World Trade Organisation, said Britain would face tariffs on its exports to Europe if it was unwilling to accept free movement and continue contributions to the EU budget.

Mr Lamy told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘The notion that there will be no difference in the trading relationship with the UK out [of the EU] is pie in the sky.

‘The UK will not have the same easy access to the single market outside the EU. This is absolutely obvious. There will be tariffs on British goods coming into Europe.’

‘Brexit should be the sooner the better’