Fishing Row Escalates Between France And UK

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and French President Emmanuel Macron met to discuss tensions. London said it was “up to France” to step back from threats over port access. But according to Macron, the ball was “in Britain’s court” and he hoped there would be a positive response on Monday, BBC reports.

Tuesday is the deadline for more permits to be granted for French fishing boats to operate in British waters. Otherwise UK fishing boats could be barred from some ports, French officials have warned.

On Friday, a letter from the French Prime Minister Jean Castex to European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, seen by the BBC, said the EU must demonstrate in this dispute that there was “more damage to leaving the EU than remaining there”.

Mr Johnson said he was “puzzled” by the letter. “I must say I was puzzled to read a letter from the French prime minister explicitly asking for Britain to be punished for leaving the EU”, he added.