Kemi Badenoch has rejected Emmanuel Macron's claim that Brexit caused the surge in small boat crossings across the English Channel. The Conservative leader dismissed the French President's assessment and called for an end to blaming Brexit for current problems.
Macron made his controversial comments during a press conference with Sir Keir Starmer on Thursday, claiming British voters had been "sold a lie" about Brexit's ability to tackle illegal immigration. His remarks came at the end of a three-day state visit that saw Britain and France agree a landmark deal to return small boat arrivals.
Badenoch hits back at claims
Speaking at Stansted Airport on Friday, Badenoch told PA that she disagreed with Macron's assessment. She pointed to rising illegal migration in Italy, France and the United States as evidence that Brexit was not the cause.
"Brexit didn't impact any of those countries," Badenoch said. "It's time for people to stop blaming Brexit for problems and actually start coming up with solutions for the new problems that are affecting our country."
Migration numbers show sharp rise
The Conservative leader argued that her party under her leadership was focused on fixing today's problems rather than dwelling on the past. She noted that many issues the Conservatives dealt with between 2010 and 2015 had since changed.
Macron had argued that Britain's lack of a "migratory deal" with the EU after Brexit created an incentive for Channel crossings. He claimed this was "the precise opposite of what Brexit had promised" and highlighted previous success in preventing illegal crossings by road and rail before Brexit.
Dramatic increase since EU departure
Boat crossings have indeed increased dramatically since Britain formally left the EU. The numbers rose from 1,843 people making the journey in 2019 to 28,526 in 2021 and 45,774 in 2022.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper avoided directly addressing Macron's comments when questioned earlier. Instead, she focused on how criminal smuggling gangs exploit any situation to make money from desperate migrants.
Gangs weaponise any situation
Cooper told Sky News that smuggling gangs "weaponise anything that is happening" to their advantage. She explained how gangs promised people they needed to cross quickly before Brexit was implemented, then changed their tactics afterwards.
"As soon as Brexit happened, they then said 'Oh, well, now you've got to pay us money, because this means you can't be returned because the Dublin Agreement isn't in place,'" Cooper said. She emphasised the need to fundamentally undermine the criminal gangs' business model.
(PA/London) Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
