Burnham, Macron talk border security and stronger Europe-UK ties

What the report says

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham held his first official meeting with a European leader in London on Thursday, meeting French President Emmanuel Macron at Downing Street to discuss migration, trade, the war in Ukraine and broader UK-EU cooperation, according to Al Jazeera. The meeting came less than two months after Burnham took office and was presented by both governments as an important step in resetting ties between London and Paris.

A major focus was border security and crossings in the English Channel. The two sides discussed small boat arrivals, including the reported growing use of larger inflatable boats carrying undocumented migrants and asylum seekers to England’s south coast. Downing Street said France would send a 45-officer surge team to western French beaches in the coming weeks, building on an April agreement aimed at reducing unauthorized crossings. The UK government also said arrivals have fallen to their lowest level since 2020, while insisting it will continue targeting the criminal networks involved.

The talks also covered economic and strategic issues. Burnham is seeking closer post-Brexit cooperation with Europe to support sluggish growth, though he has ruled out rejoining the EU single market, customs union or free movement system. According to the UK government, he warned that the EU’s “Made in Europe” industrial agenda could create difficulties for British steelmakers. The leaders also discussed defence, including next steps on local assembly lines in Ukraine for the SCALP long-range missile system. Macron called the meeting a very important moment and said France wanted to deepen relations with Britain.