French
President Emmanuel Macron said a special post-Brexit trade agreement between
Britain and the EU was certainly possible but would not involve full access to
the single market, in a BBC interview to be screened Sunday.
Macron, who
met British Prime Minister Theresa May for talks on Thursday, said there could
not be complete single market access without fully signing up.
However,
Britain could strike a deal that would fall between full access and a regular
trade agreement.
“For sure,
you will have your own solution,” Macron told BBC television, in extracts
released Saturday.
“But… this
special way should be consistent with the preservation of the single market and
our collective interests.
“To get full
access to the single market, you need contribution to the budget and you have
to accept the freedoms… and you have to accept the jurisdiction.
“As soon as
you decide not to join these preconditions, it’s not a full access,” the
40-year-old said.
“So it’s
something perhaps between this full access and a trade agreement.”
After
Thursday’s talks with May, Macron said France would not give in to British
demands for the financial services sector to be covered by a Brexit trade deal.
Full access
for financial services to the single market “is not feasible”, he told the BBC.
“There
should be no cherry-picking in the single market because that’s a dismantling
of the single market.”
Macron said
Britain could have “deeper relations” with the European Union than other
countries, as is the case with Norway.
Following a
referendum in 2016, Britain is due to leave the EU in March 2019.
“I do
respect this vote, I do regret this vote, and I would love to welcome you
again,” Macron said.
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