Emmanuel Macron insisted the European Union needs to keep up with demands for ambitious change without giving in to the financial pressure of Brexit. President Macron conceded France will be required to pay more into the common budget to compensate for the losses but urged member states to agree to the proposed contribution plan to deliver on the “new priorities” agreed with the European Commission. Speaking upon his arrival at the latest EU Summit in Brussels, the French President said: “We have to acknowledge the departure of the British.
“But it’s still unacceptable to have a Europe that compensates for the departure of the UK by reducing its standards.
“We are here to discuss our ambitions and we have agreed with the new Commission when it arrived, when we fought for the Europeans, to bring in new ambitions.”
Mr Macron added: “The same Commission who tell us we need more climate ambition, more military ambition, more ambition in responding to the migration issue. We need some coherence.
“This budget is a hit for France, we are going to increase our contribution by billions of euros. But we have to be coherent – if we think there needs to be more Europe, we also need to exigent on policies.”
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