British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was in Paris on Thursday (29 August) to make the case for his “once-in-a-generation reset” with the EU, just a day after meeting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
Starmer, who was in Paris on Wednesday evening (28 August) to attend the opening ceremony of the Paralympics, met French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday as he seeks to reset diplomatic ties with key EU leaders after years of distant and frosty relations under Conservative, pro-Brexit governments.
Both men are said to have discussed global crises, irregular immigration across the Channel and the future relationship between the UK and the EU, according to Elysée officials.
The day before, the British prime minister was in Berlin to agree the terms of a future Anglo-German defence partnership – similar to the Lancaster House pact that has governed the Franco-British defence and security relationship since 2010.
“We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reset our relationship with Europe,” Starmer said at a press conference alongside Scholz while pledging not to reverse course on Brexit.
Fresh common grounds
“It is in the interests of the UK and the EU, but also of the UK and European countries, it has bilateral relations with, to work together towards this ‘reset’, moving on from past turbulences [under Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak leaderships],” former European Commission Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier told Euractiv.
Frosty bilateral diplomatic relations with Paris were the norm during the years of Brexit negotiations – until Macron and then-prime minister Sunak found new common ground, and a new financial agreement was reached to increase police checks to prevent irregular Channel crossings into UK waters in March 2023.
This was followed a few months later by the first-ever state visit by King Charles III, further signalling that a thaw was underway.
Starmer’s diplomatic mission to Germany and France is designed to reaffirm that the UK is ready to make its diplomatic ties with the EU stronger than ever since the 2016 referendum.
“The reset so far is on atmosphere rather than substance,” Lord Peter Ricketts, chairman of the House of Lords European Affairs Committee, told Euractiv.
“It’s focused on goodwill and good intentions, a commitment to working together, and shared interests,” he added.
Instead, more substantive discussions could see the light of day as Starmer engages with the top brass in Brussels in the coming weeks and months.
Getting more out of Brussels
High on the list of priorities in the bilateral relationship are defence and energy issues.
“We must continue the work that was done in Lancaster House [on Defence],” especially as both nations are nuclear powers, Barnier said.
Meanwhile, France’s EDF oversees building two new-generation nuclear reactors in Hinkley Point, in Somerset.
Youth mobility is also high on the French and EU demands list, which Starmer has so far refused to address.
“Starmer cannot just go to Brussels with asks of their own,” Lord Peter told Euractiv.
He predicts this could be a tactical move, as the UK is set to enter into wider and more complex negotiations on a review of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) starting in 2026 – in the hope of getting more out of Brussels.
“Important progress is possible between the UK and the EU […], but the game’s rules have not changed: there shall be no cherry-picking and no access to the Single Market à la carte,” Barnier warned.
Whether Starmer’s charm offensive will succeed in assuaging some of these concerns remains to be seen.