Fresh evidence has emerged of the depths to which the UK’s relationship with France has sunk as French media reported that Emmanuel Macron referred to Boris Johnson in private as “un clown.” Amid a continuing stand-off over France’s handling of migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats, a former French ambassador to London, Sylvie Bermann, stated that cross-Channel relations had “never been so bad since Waterloo.”
The magazine Le Canard Enchaîné quoted the French president describing the Johnson administration to advisers as a “circus” and accusing the prime minister of trying to portray himself as a victim in order to avoid blame for the “catastrophic” outcome of Brexit. On Thursday, Home secretary Priti Patel was visiting Italy to discuss illegal immigration on the first leg of a drive to win support from capitals across the EU for the UK’s demand for tougher action in the Channel in the wake of last week’s tragic death of 27 people whose inflatable boat sank during an attempted crossing.
