France's Macron makes a state visit to the UK with migration and Ukraine on the agenda
Macron and Prime Minister Keir Starmer will also try to advance plans for a post-ceasefire security force for Ukraine, despite apparent U.S. indifference to the idea and Russia's refusal to halt the onslaught on its neighbor.
Macron's three-day visit, at the invitation of King Charles III, is the first state visit to the U.K. by a European Union head of state since Brexit, and a symbol of the British government's desire to reset relations with the bloc that the U.K. acrimoniously left in 2020.
The president and his wife, Brigitte Macron, will be driven to Windsor Castle by horse-drawn carriage, greeted by a military honor guard and treated to a state banquet hosted by the king and Queen Camilla. The British royals made a state visit to France in September 2023.
Macron also will address both houses of Britain's Parliament in the building's fabulously ornate Royal Gallery before sitting down for talks with Starmer on migration, defense and investment.
At a U.K.-France summit on Thursday, senior government officials from the two countries will discuss small-boat crossings, a thorny issue for successive governments on both sides of the channel.
Britain receives fewer asylum-seekers than Mediterranean European countries, but thousands of migrants each year use northern France as a launching point to reach the U.K., either by stowing away in trucks or — after a clampdown on that route — in small boats across one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.
The U.K. has struck a series of deals with France over the years to increase patrols of beaches and share intelligence in an attempt to disrupt the smuggling gangs.
It has all had only a limited impact. About 37,000 people were detected crossing the English Channel in small boats in 2024, the second-highest annual figure after 46,000 in 2022. More than 20,000 people made the crossing in the first six months of 2025, up by about 50% from the same period last year. Dozens of people have died attempting the crossing.
Starmer, whose center-left government was elected a year ago, has pledged to ' smash the gangs ' behind organized people-smuggling. His plan rests on closer cooperation with France and with countries further up the migrants' route from Africa and the Middle East. The U.K. also aims to strike deals with individual nations to take back failed asylum seekers.
British officials have been pushing for French police to intervene more forcefully to stop the boats, and welcomed the sight of officers slashing rubber dinghies with knives in recent days.
U.K. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the French are 'bringing in important new tactics to stop boats that are in the water.'
Britain also is pushing France to let officers intervene against boats in deeper waters, a change the government in Paris is considering. Campaigners for migrants' rights and a police union warn that doing so could endanger both migrants and officers.
Starmer spokesperson Tom Wells said some of the tactics being discussed are 'operationally and legally complex, but we're working closely with the French.'
The two leaders have worked closely together to rally support for Ukraine, though they have taken contrasting approaches to U.S. President Donald Trump, with Macron more willing to challenge the American president than the emollient Starmer.
Britain and France have led efforts to form an international peacekeeping force for Ukraine to reinforce a future ceasefire with European troops and equipment and U.S. security guarantees.
Trump has shown little enthusiasm for the idea, however, and a ceasefire remains elusive. British officials say the 'coalition of the willing' idea is alive and well, with Macron and Starmer due to join an international videoconference on Thursday to discuss planning for the force.
Starmer spoke with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday about the 'significant progress being made by military planners,' the British leader's office said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
31 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Troop deployment plans abandoned in latest Coalition of the Willing talks
Britain and Europe have sidelined plans to deploy thousands of troops to Ukraine because Donald Trump's attempts to negotiate an end to the war have failed, The Telegraph can disclose. The ' Coalition of the Willing ' will concentrate future discussions on sustaining Kyiv in a war of attrition against Russia's invading forces in an apparent softening of plans. The group, hastily set up by Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron earlier this year, was created with the intention to arrange a European-led ground force to police any ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia. At a meeting called to coincide with the French president's state visit to Britain, dozens of world leaders will instead discuss plans to ramp up ammunition supplies and boost Ukraine's domestic defence industry. Rebuilding Ukraine's energy production and post-war reconstruction of its war-stricken cities will also be discussed, according to a draft agenda shared with The Telegraph. The decision to change the group's approach comes after months of failed attempts by the US President to convince Vladimir Putin to sign up to a truce. A diplomatic source told the Telegraph: 'Given that Trump's strategy has not yet yielded any results, the ceasefire is still too far away to discuss how to secure it. 'What we need now is to continue to supply arms to Ukraine so that it can defend itself and, hand in hand with that, to continue to pressure Russia to start serious negotiations.' Europeans hope that continuing to demonstrate their support for Ukraine will convince Putin to come to the negotiating table. Trump funds weapons after U-turn Mr Trump has also appeared to have had a change of heart after signalling he was 'not happy' with Putin for ignoring his demands for a ceasefire. The US president said he would send more 'defensive weapons' to Kyiv, reversing a decision from days earlier to pause shipments. But Mr Trump has said he would help fund Patriot air defence systems for Ukraine after becoming angry over Russia's drone and missile barrages on Ukrainian cities. He said: 'We're going to send some more weapons. We have to. They have to be able to defend themselves. 'They are getting hit very hard now.' The Pentagon last week put weapon shipments, including surface-to-air missiles and artillery shells, on pause as part of a review over its own stockpiles. Lack of US security guarantee The talks on Thursday, via videolink, will be the first time the Coalition of the Willing has come together since March. Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to join the call from Rome, where he is attending the annual Ukraine Recovery Conference. The decision to all but end talks over a European-led troop deployment will come as a blow to the Ukrainian president, who has been calling for robust security guarantees from his allies. Talks over the prospect of boots on the ground largely collapsed because of limited troop pledges and a refusal by Mr Trump to offer US security guarantees to European militaries stationed in the war-torn country. A source familiar with the discussions said: 'Some realism has broken out. 'It could have duplicated existing Nato and other mechanisms, but it all fell on the issue of the US backstop and limited troop pledges.' Plans previously watered down The original plans for a large scale troop deployment to protect Ukraine's cities, ports and nuclear power plants had already been watered down to moving Western training missions back to the country. It was thought that the presence of British and French military trainers would fulfil the promise to put Western boots on the ground while not provoking Russia or putting Nato's plans to defend its eastern flank in jeopardy. Earlier this week, a French official told reporters: 'On the agenda, there's how to maintain Ukraine in a capacity to fight, how to increase pressure on Russia and how to continue the work on the next steps.' A readout of Sir Keir's latest call with Mr Zelensky said the Coalition would also debrief on the 'significant progress being made by military planners'. The Prime Minister told the Ukrainian president: 'The recent Russian attacks reinforced the need for Ukraine's friends and allies to focus both on ensuring Ukraine had the support it needed to defend itself, while also planning for a post-ceasefire future.'
BreakingNews.ie
33 minutes ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Religious orders will be ‘held accountable' for sex abuse crimes in schools
Institutions and religious orders involved in historical sex abuse in schools will be 'held accountable' for the 'awful' crimes, the education minister has vowed. The Government approved the establishment of a commission of investigation into allegations of historical sex abuse in schools across the country. Advertisement Mr Justice Michael McGrath will chair the commission. Minister for Education Helen McEntee, who outlined the details of the commission of investigation, said that any redress scheme would have to be funded by the religious orders and organisations. Minister McEntee announces establishment of Commission of Investigation into historical sexual abuse in schools and appointment of Chair — Department of Education and Youth (@Education_Ire) July 8, 2025 Speaking at Government Buildings on Tuesday, Ms McEntee said that more works needed to be done to establish exactly what is owned and in the possession of the religious orders. The scoping inquiry found some 2,395 allegations of sexual abuse in day and boarding schools run by religious orders, involving 884 alleged abusers in 308 schools across the country, between 1927 and 2013. Advertisement Most of the allegations were reported from the records of some 42 religious orders. The commission will examine the handling of allegations, suspicions and concerns of sex abuse in schools, failure to treat concerns, causes and responsibility for such failure, failure to prevent harm, and the concealment of child sex abuse. Ms McEntee said work is ongoing around how such a redress scheme would work, but said that it must be funded by religious orders and any other school organisations 'involved in these awful crimes'. The Fine Gael minister said it will take five years to complete, at a cost of tens of millions of euros. Advertisement She said the Government was examining a number of ways to make this happen, including making legislative change. Ms McEntee said that any steps to secure or maximise payment for a redress scheme is being worked on by the Attorney General 'It is important to stress that the preferred outcome here is that religious institutions and organisations would come forward,' she added. 'The commission will be separated into two parts, but they will happen in tandem. Advertisement 'The first will be the investigation, and the intention is that the chair will be supported by two commissioners. 'One commissioner which will look at the investigation into handling of sexual abuse claims in religious schools. 'The second commissioner will start work on the investigation into sexual abuse in schools that were non-religious run schools. 'The third commissioner will then focus solely on the survivor engagement forum. Advertisement 'The forum itself will be non-adversarial. 'There will be no cross examination. 'It will be anonymised, and it will mean that every single person who wishes to come forward to tell their story, to tell what happened to them, in that non-adversarial way that they would be able to do so, and it will allow all survivors to do this.' She added: 'The work that is happening in parallel is further examination of the religious orders, what funds they have, what assets they have, what levers may be used by government to ensure that funding is provided by those religious groups and orders. 'It's only after that that obviously a decision would have to be taken on a redress scheme. 'So while it's happening in parallel, it's not the establishment of a redress scheme, it's for the work that is needed, but I'm really clear those who are responsible should be held accountable, and that includes financially, but there is a body of work still needed. 'There are a number of different measures that we're working on at the moment. Some would require legislative change. 'Some of those would relate to limitations for civil claims, the statute of limitations that obviously applies to individuals who are taking cases.' Ms McEntee said that a clear five-year time line has been set out to ensure that it is not an 'open-ended scheme'. 'The chair, accompanied by additional commissioners and a support team will be in place by October 1, and they have been given a five-year time limit to complete this work,' the minister added. 'Importantly, and very clearly outlined in the terms of reference is that no later than two years into their work, the chair must provide a report to the minister of the day, outlining whether or not the work of the commission of investigation is on track to be completed within the five years. 'If it is not, there is a very clear obligation to redefine the scope or the work that is being done to make sure that this is done on time. 'I am absolutely committed and determined in supporting what will be an independent commission of investigation, but supporting their work that this is done on time, that survivors do not have to wait, that this does not go on indefinitely, and that importantly, the terms of reference would set out how we investigate the handling of what happened in schools who was responsible, where abuses were raised, where concerns were raised, what happened then, that that can be identified. 'But if we are not on track, if the chair feels that there are changes that need to be made, that will have to be outlined very clearly in a note to the minister no later than two years.' If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and webchat options at or visit Rape Crisis Help.
Times
35 minutes ago
- Times
Macron state visit: King and Queen welcome French president — watch live
President Macron and his wife Brigitte have arrived at Westminster Abbey as part of their state visit to the UK. The pair were flanked by security guards as they were met at the entrance gates by representatives from the Anglican church. The French president is viewing the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior, whose body was brought from France to be buried at the Abbey in 1920. Macron laid a wreath next to the tomb and a prayer was read out remembering all those who have given their lives for their country in wars. After enjoying a private lunch in the castle's state dining room, the King and Queen escorted their guests into the green drawing room of Windsor Castle. Among the items laid out for President Macron and his wife, Brigitte, was a bottle of Louis XIII Cognac in a Baccarat Crystal decanter, as served to King George VI and Queen Elizabeth during the July 1938 state visit, and later to Queen Elizabeth II in April 1957. The King was heard joking that his guests should have a glass of the vintage Cognac. The French couple were also shown a 1632 second folio of 36 Shakespeare plays, complete with notes in the margin written by Charles I. Brigitte Macron was seen delighting over miniature books that were a part of Queen Mary's doll's house. Sir Keir Starmer will urge President Macron to agree a 'one in, one out' migrant returns deal on Tuesday, despite warnings that announcing it before it is ready will lead to a surge in crossings. The prime minister is pressing for the deal as the centrepiece of a new agreement between Britain and France that the two leaders will sign at an Anglo-French summit on Thursday. The arrangement would allow Britain to return small boat migrants to France in exchange for accepting asylum seekers with a family connection in the UK. However, British and French officials are yet to finalise the details as the French president's three-day state visit begins on Tuesday. • Read in full: Keir Starmer to push Macron for last-minute migrant return deal Amid the pomp and ceremony surrounding Emmanuel Macron's three-day state visit to the UK there is business to be done. Sir Keir Starmer will be hoping to use the event to make significant progress in three broad areas — illegal migration, nuclear power and defence. This one appears likely to go down to the wire. Starmer is attempting to secure a 'one in, one out' deal with France that would allow the UK to send migrants who cross the English Channel on small boats back to France. One of the centrepieces of Macron's visit is the Sizewell C plant in Suffolk, only the second new nuclear power station to be built in a generation in the UK. EDF, the French-owned state energy company, owns a 15 per cent stake in the project. • Read in full: Macron's visit could shape key areas of UK policy The King appeared to be suffering from a bloodshot eye as he met President Macron. The Times understands it is a burst blood vessel which is not said to be connected to any health conditions. With President Trump's America straining at the leash of the transatlantic alliance and President Putin's revanchism threatening eastern Europe, the two nations of the entente cordiale have rarely needed each other more, certainly not since the conclusion of the Second World War. They lead Europe's two indispensable, nuclear-armed militaries. But when Macron and Sir Keir Starmer chair the 37th Franco-British summit this week, it will be an encounter between floundering leaders of floundering countries whose relations have been routinely prickly, not least when they were pledging undying friendship. • Read in full: Discontent cordiale: why Britain and France need each other more than ever In his speech at the banquet on Tuesday evening, the King will say that today's challenges 'know no borders' and that 'no fortress' can protect a country as it did in the past. He is also expected to reflect on 1,000 years of 'shared history and culture between our two peoples'. Charles will add: 'Our two countries face a multitude of complex threats, emanating from multiple directions. As friends and allies, we face them together.' The King will say that the UK and France can confronting joint challenges because 'our two nations share not only values but also the tireless determination to act on them in the world'. The three couples — the King and Queen, the Princess and Prince of Wales and the Macrons — stood side by side for the national anthems of France and the UK. They then spent a few minutes greeting a line-up of dignitaries before splitting into carriages to ride through Windsor. The King and President Macron sat together in the first carriage, the 1902 State Landau, immediately seen deep in conversation. The Queen and Mrs Macron followed in the Semi-State Landau behind, looking around them as cheers could be heard in the distance and beginning to wave at those assembling at the side of the road. The Prince and Princess of Wales sat together in a third carriage, an Ascot Landau, with France's armed forces minister, Sebastien Lecornu, and the French culture minister, Rachida Dati. The King was wearing a new button on his lapel, which is the 'boutonnière' of the legion d'honneur, France's highest honour. It was awarded to Charles in 1985. The Macrons received the warmest and most tactile of welcomes from the royal family, who swapped kisses and affectionate pats on the arm as they greeted one another on the royal dais in Windsor. The King kissed Brigitte Macron on the hand, while President Macron kissed the Queen's hand. At one point Camilla appeared to imitate riding a horse, which made Mrs Macron laugh. Camilla kissed her step son Prince William and his wife the Princess of Wales on the cheek. The King and Queen have arrived at a dias on Datchet Road, Windsor, where they await the arrival of President Macron and his wife Brigitte. In between the ceremonial welcome, lunch with the royal family and the banquet at Windsor Castle, there is government business for President Macron in Westminster, where the president will address MPs and peers in the Royal Gallery of the House of Lords. • Macron's state visit: Border, energy and security deals on the table Macron's visit will culminate in a UK-France summit during which he and Sir Keir Starmer hope to reach an agreement on migrant Channel crossings. A royal salute will be fired by The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery from the East Lawn at the Windsor Great Park while another will be fired simultaneously at the Tower of London. Arriving at the Quadrangle at Windsor Castle, the French president, accompanied by the King, will inspect a guard of honour. On Tuesday evening, a state banquet will be held in their honour at Windsor Castle. The Prince and Princess of Wales have arrived at RAF Northolt to welcome President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte. Kate was wearing an outfit from French fashion house Christian Dior and a hat by Jess Collett. Her earrings belonged to Diana, Princess of Wales, and the pearl necklace was from the late Queen's collection. The Christian Dior jacket is the 30 Montaigne Rose Des Vents Bar Jacket and a piece from the 2024 collection. It was reimagined by Maria Grazia Chiuri, who was inspired by the original first created in 1947 by Christian Dior himself. President Macron and his wife, Brigitte, have arrived in the UK for the first French state visit since 2008 and the first by the head of a European Union country since Brexit. At the start of the three-day tour, the Macrons were greeted at RAF Northolt by the Prince and Princess of Wales. They will travel to Windsor where they will join the King and Queen for a carriage procession through the streets.
