Migration crisis in Calais: Gérald Darmanin dismisses the British from the meeting of November 28

Published on : 11/26/2021 – 09:09

“The problem goes beyond our borders. This is why we are going to work on common solutions from Sunday with our European partners,” said one in the entourage of Gérald Darmanin, Friday, November 26, after the Minister of Interior has canceled Britain’s invitation to the meeting, two days after the sinking that claimed the lives of 27 migrants in the English Channel. Priti Patel, British Home Secretary, will therefore not be present, although she was initially invited.

“The British government chooses to do domestic policy at a time when our only priority should be to avoid further tragedies in the Channel. We regret it”, continued in the entourage of the minister.

The Home Office argues that “the British obsession with sending migrants back to France should not make us lose sight of the fact that it is because they have practically no legal way to get to the Kingdom any longer. “Not that these men and women are attempting this dangerous crossing”.

On Thursday, in a letter addressed to the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson asked France to take back the illegal immigrants who would manage to reach the coasts of Great Britain, triggering the anger of Paris.

“The UK must engage in good faith in working on the root causes of this phenomenon. It cannot both have an economic model based on a large immigrant workforce and slam the door on those who ask him for asylum. We must be coherent “, we added in the entourage of Gerald Darmanin, insisting on the fact that France remains” convinced that the only decent thing to face such tragedies is to seek real solutions “.

“Our only enemy,” it was stressed, “are the smugglers. It is against these criminal groups that we must concentrate our energies.”

With AFP