French President Emmanuel Macron gestures as he speaks at the Guildhall banquet in London, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. via Associated Press
Emmanuel Macron has taken a fresh swipe at Brexit as he told the UK: “You were stronger with the European Union.”
The French president spoke out as he prepares to strike a migrant returns deal with Keir Starmer.
Macron made his comments during a speech at the Guildhall in London, where a banquet was held to make his three-day state visit to the UK.
It is the first such visit by a European head of state since the Brexit referendum in 2016.
Macron said: “I am not totally convinced that both the European Union and France and the UK are in the best possible position today.
“I am very respectful for the voice of the people and the choice your country made nine years ago, and I’m lucid about the solemnity of the state visit being the first one of a European head of state post-Brexit.
“But I have to say the European Union was stronger with you and you were stronger with the European Union.”
His comments were met with a loud round of applause.
The French president went on to say that his country and the UK “have to work together” in the future, despite no longer both being members of the EU.
He said: “We have to take our responsibilities together, we have to clearly to decide to choose out future, to write our future, together.”
President Macron speaking at Guildhall,
“The European Union was stronger with the UK, and the UK was stronger with the European Union”
“We want to write our future and not be the story written by another continent.. The only way to chose our future is to do it together” pic.twitter.com/9XRlip5aUO
— Farrukh (@implausibleblog) July 9, 2025
Two years ago Macron hit out at the “consequence of Brexit” as he stood alongside then-PM Rishi Runak at a press conference at the Elysee Palace following a summit in Paris.
Asked whether the relationship between the UK and France can ever be the same after Brexit, Macron said: “This is my wish. But it depends on what we will do in the coming months and years.
“On the short front what we have to do is to fix the consequences of Brexit.
“A lot of issues we have are a direct consequence of Brexit and probably some of these consequences were under-estimated, but we have to fix them.”
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