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BREXIT

Why would the French be jealous, resentful and fearful of the British?

A France-bashing article in the pro-Brexit Daily Mail newspaper has sparked ridicule, not least for the fact it stated "the French peer across the Channel at the British with jealousy, resentment and fear". It's more like pity at the moment, writes Ben McPartland.

Why would the French be jealous, resentful and fearful of the British?
Photo: AFP

The French president Emmanuel Macron was always going to end up an arch-enemy of the pro-Brexit British press.

His desire for deeper European integration doesn't quite fit with the desire by Britain's Brexit cheerleaders such as the Daily Express and the Daily Mail to see the UK wash its hands of the EU as soon as possible.

So the Daily Mail's latest attack on the French President, by columnist Dominc Sandbrook shouldn't come as a surprise.

Sandbrook was particularly unhappy about Macron's alleged plan to block Britain's departure from the EU so that the country would simply have to reverse its decision through a second referendum. 

Macron was a “foreign bully” and a “Parisian pygmy” and “a classic over-privileged Gallic politician”, who would meet his downfall at the hands of the British just like his hero Napolean did at Waterloo and Trafalgar, the writer said.

Yes, absolute xenophobic 'drivel' as many people pointed out.

The writer also seemed bizarrely taken a back and angered that France's Europe Minister Nathalie Loiseau for suggesting that a no-deal would be better for France than a deal that would penalise French businesses – making reference to Theresa May's so-called Chequers plan that the EU has rejected.

Has he forgotten that there are two sides involved in the Brexit talks? Just like the British Prime Minister Theresa May, who coined the phrase “no deal is better than a bad deal”, the French are simply looking out for their interests.  

That's what happens in negotiations.

This is not the French hoping the worst for Britain or trying to punish the British people, it's just the French making sure they limit the negative effects of Brexit.

There is the view in Britain that the French are trying to profit from Brexit at the UK's expense. But the French are entitled to protect their interests and also compete with other EU nations like Germany or Ireland for the potential benefits of any fallout, hence their attempts to make Paris a more attractive place for bankers than Frankfurt or Dublin.

 “We don't have a predatory vision when it comes to Brexit,” France's Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire told The Local recently. “It's not about taking jobs from the UK, it's about (making France) more attractive – all in the framework of fair competition.”

French are 'fearful, resentful and jealous of British'

But what was perhaps the most bizarre line of the paranoid jingoistic rant was the statement Macron was “pandering to the jealousy, resentment and fear with which so many French men and women peer anxiously across the Channel.”

Of all the French men and French women I have met, I can honestly say I have never met one who was either jealous, resentful or scared of British people.

And that was before Britain got bogged down in the shambles that has been Brexit.

Brits in France will no doubt have been asked many times by their compatriots back in the UK 'what the French make of Brexit?'

It's always a difficult question to answer, not because opinions are divided, but because the French just don't often talk about it.

The fact is, most of the time Britain's ungainly exit from the EU is just not top of their list of priorities and that goes for the press and the politicians too. The French people who do bring up the subject of Brexit are for the most part bemused, confused and relieved they are not the country ripping itself apart.

That view was shared by many on Twitter, with one person summing the French view up perfectly.

“They just don't get it. It's just one of those odd English things, like cricket, jelly or Morris dancing,” said Kevin Harigan.

As Brexit reaches its denouement over the coming weeks and months before Britain and the EU go their separate ways on March 29th, French interest will no doubt increase, but Dominic Sandbrook, the Daily Mail and people in Britain should know that it won't be provoking any fear, resentment or jealousy on this side of the Channel.

Pity, perhaps.

 

Member comments

  1. So the little island in the North Sea growls. You lost the Empire to the US. Now you are losing EU. Good luck trying to establish trade deals with EU, US and your friends in India.

  2. Which empire have we lost to the US ? I wasn’t aware that they had one. Where does this jerk get his info. from ? Seems that he or she has an axe to grind.

  3. This entire act of madness is nothing short of criminal. I’ve written before, many times, I consider the UK government – and parliament – to be acting criminally. They are ignoring their primary responsibility; protection of the nation and it’s people. The British people do, indeed, need to “take back control” – of their parliament.

  4. Seriously that writer believes French are jealous and fearful? haha I believe the opposite to be true When you have little cockroaches like Nigel Farrell supporting the vote for Brexit and then ditching everyone at the last minute.
    I am personally not against Brexit. On the contrary, I believe people have the right to choose their own path. But keep in mind, French (and Europeans) are in favor of a post-brexit deal. My point being: People want to leave the EU? (With or without a deal) –> Your choice! But do not for a second think the French are “jealous”. If it were true? ==> The French would be the first to encourage a no deal brexit 😉 Remember that! (A no deal brexit would make many companies want to invest elsewhere). So I don’t for a second believe the French are jealous my dear writer! 🙂

  5. Really people in France dont care as much as people in uk do. Is just like what a stupid choice they make and just another day. UK is not the centre of the world anymore wake up people.

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BREXIT

INTERVIEW: ‘A lot of people think Brexit is done, but it’s not for Brits in Europe’

A new project from citizens campaign group British in Europe aims to empower Brits in the EU to advocate for their post-Brexit rights. The Local spoke to BiE chair Jane Golding about the problems British citizens face in Europe and why the project is still needed.

INTERVIEW: 'A lot of people think Brexit is done, but it's not for Brits in Europe'

In the early days of 2021, after the United Kingdom had left the EU and completed the final stage of Brexit, many British citizens returned to their home countries in Europe only to face a grilling at the border. 

Though the Withdrawal Agreement (WA) technically guaranteed their right to live and work in the countries they’d settled in before Brexit, there was widespread confusion about these fundamental rights and many were treated like new arrivals. 

Over time, the chaos at the airports subsided as border officials and airlines were given clearer guidance on the treatment of Brits. But three years later, a number of Brits who live on the continent still face problems when it comes to proving their post-Brexit rights.

This was the reason campaign group British in Europe decided to set up their new EU-funded ICE project. Starting this year in March, it aims to build valuable connections between UK citizens abroad and mentor the next generation of civil rights advocates around the continent. The acronym stands for ‘Inform, Empower, Connect’ and the project’s organisers describe it as “the first project of its kind”. 

READ ALSO: Hundreds of Britons across Europe given orders to leave

“It’s a completely innovative project – especially the fact that it’s across so many countries,” Jane Golding, chair of British in Europe and one of the project’s founders, told The Local.

Bringing together groups from 11 EU member states, the project aims to train up volunteers to understand both the Withdrawal Agreement and EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, as well as learning skills like advocacy and communication, using real-life civil rights cases that are referred to British in Europe.

“The ultimate goal is to amplify the messages across the wider group,” said Golding. “You start with the volunteers, they go back to their groups, then the people that we train, they go back and train people. Then they pass on that knowledge to the wider groups, on their Facebook accounts and through social media, and hopefully it all snowballs, not just in their countries but across the EU.” 

READ ALSO: What Brits in Europe need to know about UK’s new minimum income rules

‘Far-reaching repercussions’

So many years after Brexit, it’s hard to believe that there’s still a need for a project like ICE that empowers Brits to protect their rights. Indeed, the future of groups like British in Europe and regional groups like British in Germany and British in Spain felt uncertain just a year or two ago. 

But Golding says there are still serious issues cropping up for Brits in several countries around Europe – they just have a different quality to the problems that arose at the start.

“In some ways it’s needed even more because as we predicted right at the beginning, at the first stage of implementation, you’ve got the more routine cases,” she explained.

“What we’re seeing now is not as many cases, but when the cases come up, they’re complex. They can have such far-reaching repercussions on people’s lives. And of course, memories start to fade. A lot of people think Brexit is already done, but it’s not.”

Volunteers in British in Europe ICE project

The volunteers of the British in Europe ICE project pose for a photo at the kick-off meeting in Brussels on May 21st, 2024. Photo courtesy of Jane Golding

Though the rights set out in the Withdrawal Agreement apply across the continent, different countries have taken different approaches to implementing them.

That means that while in Germany, for example, UK citizens simply had to declare that they lived in the country, people in neighbouring Denmark had to apply for their rights. 

This led to a notorious situation in Denmark in which as many as 2,000 Brits were threatened with deportation after not applying in time or completing the right application process. According to Golding, this had a lot to do with the fact that people who arrived in 2020 weren’t given the same information as other UK migrants who arrived before. 

In Sweden, meanwhile, the situation is still difficult for many Brits who lived there prior to Brexit.

“There have been issues with an anomalously high numbers of refusals compared to other countries, and they seem to be taking a very strict approach on late applications,” Golding explained. 

READ ALSO: Brits in Sweden still in limbo years after Brexit deadline

Portugal has been another difficult case. Although the country opted for a declaratory system where Brits could simply exchange old residence documents for a new ID card after Brexit, reports suggest that the authorities have taken years to issue these cards, leaving many of the some 34,000 Brits in the country in limbo.

“While people are still waiting to have their status confirmed and have their card in their hand, it’s difficult to access a whole range of services, like health services, or applying for jobs or dealing with the authorities, or even going to the bank,” Golding said. “All of these problems just affect people’s lives.”

A French border guard checks a passport at the border

A French border guard checks a passport at the border. Photo by DENIS CHARLET / AFP

There are also concerns about the EU’s new exit and entry system (EES), due to come into force in October, which is based on biometric documentation.

“We still do not have clear data on how many people in declaratory countries like Germany, where it wasn’t compulsory to apply for the card, don’t actually have a card,” Golding said. “How is that going to play out if it’s a document-based digitalised system?”

READ ALSO: How Europe’s new EES border checks will impact flight passengers

A lack of support

In the immediate aftermath of Brexit, funding from the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) was still available to support NGOs in Europe helping Brits with their migration and civil rights issues. But that temporary funding soon expired, leaving groups like British in Europe largely on their own.

“The whole point is people’s lives change at very different paces,” Golding said. “And now this project is really going to start to pick up some of those cases and report on those issues, which is really crucial and exciting for the precedent that it sets, and it’s very clearly necessary still, because people don’t just sort their lives in the 18 months that the FCDO chose to supply that funding.”

This feeling of being left alone and increasingly isolated from the UK is one that many Brits in Europe have felt in the aftermath of Brexit. But the upcoming UK election on July 4th could be a game-changer.

This time, following a change in the law, Brits who have lived abroad for more than 15 years will be able to vote for the first time.

Polling station in the UK

A polling station in the UK. Photo by Elliott Stallion on Unsplash

When it comes to the election, the message from British in Europe is clear: “Make your voice count now, make your vote count, make sure you use it,” Golding said. 

With the June 18th registration deadline fast approaching, BiE is advising UK citizens abroad to apply for a proxy vote as soon as possible, rather than relying on a postal vote from abroad. Since the 15-year rule was abolished on January 16th, more than 100,000 British citizens have registered to vote, according to official statistics. It is unclear how many were registered before the change in the law. 

READ ALSO: How Brits living in Europe can register to vote for UK election

With an estimated 5.5 million Brits currently living abroad – 1.3 million of whom are in the EU – this could have a significant impact on the electoral landscape, Golding says. But most significantly, the change is creating a feeling of connection and belonging that wasn’t there before.

Nurturing this sense of belonging is one of the main goals of ICE.

With these bridges being built, British in Europe hopes to create a network of support that spans across borders.

“Now we’ve met. We’re going to meet,” said Golding. “We know we’re going to meet again in Berlin in October and then we’ll meet again in the new year in 2025 as well. It means a huge amount because even British in Europe, our steering team, we’ve only met physically three times.”

This opens up the possibility of people sharing their knowledge from country to country, Golding explained.

“There is crossover and the reassurance of having that EU wide view and knowing that you’re not alone and knowing that in this country, we managed to get this solution,” she said. “And then you can go back and say to the authorities in your country, well, in that country they did that – all of that helps. It’s really good.”

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