Macron warns 'all European nationalists are hidden Brexiteers'

• Macron pointed to Brexit and said all European nationalists say ‘the same lies’
• Nationalist parties surging ahead in the polls across Europe ahead of elections

Emmanuel Macron has said that Brexit has ‘impoverished the UK’ and ‘done nothing to solve immigration’ as he called on Europeans to keep out nationalists ahead of crunch elections next month.

The French President also warned that all European nationalists were ‘hidden Brexiteers’ who want to see the downfall of Europe but continue to reap its benefits.

‘I say to Europeans: Wake up. Wake up! They are hidden Brexiteers. All European nationalists are hidden Brexiteers. It’s all the same lies,’ he said in an interview with The Economist.

Macron gave the example of the Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally (RN) party, which is now leading in opinion polls for the European contest, ahead of his own centrist alliance.

He said that while the RN, whose president is 28-year-old firebrand Jordan Bardella, previously ‘wanted to pull out of Europe, out of the euro, out of everything,’ it now ‘no longer says anything.’

Emmanuel Macron has said that Brexit has ‘impoverished the UK’ and ‘done nothing to solve immigration’ as he called on Europeans to keep out nationalists at the

French far-right party Rassemblement National (RN) member of Parliament Marine Le Pen (L), and party President Jordan Bardella

Nationalist parties are surging ahead in the polls across Europe, including Belgium’s Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest), and the far-right Freedom Party (FPO) in Austria.

FPO, whose slogans include ‘stop the EU madness’, is currently polling at 30 per cent ahead of Austrians going to the polls on June 9.

Yesterday, former presidential candidate Le Pen urged voters to inflict ‘the most crushing electoral sanction’ possible on Macron’s Renaissance party at the polls next month.

In comments published today, Macron hit back at his arch rival, saying: ‘Make no mistake. If you entrust the keys to people who think like they do, there is no reason why Europe should become a great power.

‘In a way it’s as if we were saying it’s not a problem if we entrust the bank to robbers. When they are around the table, they take Europe hostage.’

‘It’s reaping the benefits of Europe, while wanting to destroy it without saying anything,’ he said. ‘And that’s true in every country.’

He noted that Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, whose Brothers of Italy party has neo-fascist roots, had ‘a European approach’ and had ‘supported the asylum and immigration pact’.

But ‘after that, the best way of building together is to have as few nationalists as possible’, he added.

Macron previously warned that ‘Europe could die’ and said the continent must form closer defence ties with Britain amid Russian aggression in Ukraine.

His comments on the economic state of Britain post-Brexit come after UN data showed last month that the UK was the fourth biggest exporter in the world – ahead of France.

But the impact of Brexit on the cost of living is still being felt, retailers warned this week, as Brits face higher grocery bills with new border checks coming into force.

Meat, dairy, plants and seeds are just some of the products which will now be subject to physical checks when imported in.

Companies have warned that the new checks will likely hit small businesses hardest and lead to price rises for customers.

The government says the measures will increase the country’s bio-security and the added cost will be ‘negligible’ compared to a major outbreak of disease.

On migration, France and Britain last year struck a deal to end migrant Channel crossings – with Rishi Sunak agreeing for the UK to pay Paris almost half a billion pounds over the next three years.

Channel crossings had already hit a new record high for the first four months of the year

Some 711 people were detected crossing the English Channel on Wednesday, the highest number on a single day so far this year, according to provisional figures from the Home Office.

Channel crossings had already hit a new record high for the first four months of a calendar year, jumping 34 per cent on 2023 when 6,192 were recorded and up 19% on the total at this stage in 2022 (6,945).

Last year 29,437 migrants arrived in the UK, down 36 per cent on a record 45,774 arrivals in 2022.

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