Notes
- Sir Keir Starmer and President Macron have established a strong diplomatic relationship, culminating in a new migrant deterrent deal.
- The agreement entails a “one in, one out” policy, where illegal arrivals are sent back to France in exchange for accepting legitimate asylum seekers.
- This pilot programme aims to begin with a small number of returns, potentially impacting public sentiment and addressing immigration as a key electoral issue.
Migrants deal a win for Starmer – and could help with fight against Reform | Politics News
The bromance between Sir Keir Starmer and President Macron is so apparent – embraces all around.
This is some deft diplomacy from Sir Keir, who has been love-bombing his French counterpart ever since he became prime minister – trying to get closer ties, be it on security, on trade, and now of course on small boats.
And he has got a win today – he’s got President Macron to agree a deterrent deal.
Cooper refuses to put number on migrant returns
You remember the Conservatives were trying the Rwanda plan to deter people from coming by sending them back to Rwanda, a third country, if they came here illegally.
What the prime minister has agreed with President Macron today is a way to put the immigration issue to bed. It’s a one in, one out deal.
Yvette Cooper said she had been in close contact with European governments which have expressed concerns about the “one in, one out” deal, saying the European Union had been “very supportive and helpful”.
Cooper said the UK and France were “not fixing the ultimate figures either for the pilot or further phases of this”, adding: “We will want to extend it as far as we’re able to.”
The home secretary said the pilot scheme would be accompanied by a plan to target those working illegally in the UK, which she said was a pull factor driving small boat crossings.
In the first 6 months only 20,000 migrants crossed the channel of which 74% were returned. According to government stats.