May woos Macron at his island hideaway
Theresa May will try to convince Emmanuel Macron today that her Chequers plan for Brexit will benefit both Britain and France, as she received official notice that their meeting is “not a negotiation”. The Prime Minister will visit Mr Macron at his island retreat, the Fort de Brégançon, as she steps up attempts to engage directly with EU leaders, sidestepping Michel Barnier, Brussels’ chief negotiator. However, a spokesman for the Elysee Palace made it clear to Mrs May that Mr Macron will not be making any concessions.
THERESA MAY will try to convince Emmanuel Macron today that her Chequers plan for Brexit will be “mutually beneficial” to Britain and France as she received official notice that their meeting is “not a negotiation”.
The Prime Minister has cut short her Italian holiday to visit Mr Macron at his island retreat, the Fort de Brégançon, as she steps up attempts to engage directly with EU leaders, sidestepping Michel Barnier, Brussels’ chief negotiator.
She is expected to urge Mr Macron to engage positively with the Chequers plan and warn that rejection of the pro- posal will increase calls from Eurosceptics for a harder line to be taken.
However, a spokesman for the Elysée Palace made it clear to Mrs May that she should go to the Mediterranean with her eyes open to the fact that Mr Macron will not be making any concessions.
The spokesman said the conversation between the two is “not a negotiation” and cannot be a “substitute” for the talks led by Mr Barnier, in whom Mr Macron has “full trust”.
Lord Ricketts, Britain’s former ambassador to France, said Mr Macron was “the last person” to break rank with the other EU27 leaders, and “doesn’t believe in softening” the EU’S stance on Brexit.
The groundwork for Mrs May’s meeting with Mr Macron has been prepared by a succession of UK ministers visiting Paris, including Philip Hammond, the Chancellor; Greg Clark, the Business Secretary; and Dominic Raab, the Brexit Secretary.
All of them are understood to have appealed to French officials to work with them rather than opposing Chequers, pointing out that Eurosceptics could defeat the Government on the Brexit deal if it is watered down any further.
A French government source said the meeting could be “the beginning of a process that will move this on from the technical to the political” as Mr Macron and other EU leaders prepare to get more engaged in the negotiations.
A Whitehall source said: “Nothing tangible is likely to come out of this meeting, but meetings like this are useful because they give an opportunity to explain where Chequers is mutually beneficial.”
Separately, it has emerged that Michael Gove privately discussed a plan to “park” Britain in the single market and customs union after the end of the transition period in the event that Theresa May fails to secure a deal with Brussels in time.
The Environment Secretary discussed a scenario over a dinner with Tory MPS in June which could see the UK stay in the European Economic Area, like Norway, to avoid a disorderly “no deal” exit.
The Prime Minister has ruled out EEA membership because it would force Britain to accept free movement and the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice.
There were also claims yesterday that Mr Gove supports a “blind Brexit” in which Britain would leave the European Union in March 2019 without having secured a deal.
It would mean committing to pay the Brexit “divorce” bill before the details of the final deal had been worked out.
Allies of Mr Gove said he made the comments at the dinner while impersonating Martin Selmayr, the EU’S top civil servant, running through various scenarios for the autumn. They insist he was not advocating membership of the EEA, adding that he is “totally behind” the Prime Minister’s Chequers plan.