Paris: The French president has personally rejected a reported British plan to bypass the EU's official Brexit negotiators and hold trade talks directly with member states.
Emmanuel Macron said European Commission chief negotiator Michel Barnier was the only point of contact for the EU side in Brexit negotiations – after reports in the British eurosceptic press that the UK would try and strike a deal with France and Germany directly.
British officials in Brussels have voiced frustration about the flexibility of the Commission's negotiating position – arguing that Mr Barnier has not been given a broad enough mandate to compromise.
The UK team is particularly concerned at the Commission's insistence that separation issues be dealt with before moving onto the form the UK and EU's future relationship will take – issues Britain says are inextricably linked. At the conclusion of the third round of talks on Friday Barnier himself said today that he was sticking "meticulously" to the mandate set for him by the EU27 states – including the leaders of France and Germany, the two countries Britain was reportedly set to deal with.
At a press conference on Thursday Macron suggested that reports in the eurosceptic British press that he was willing to speak directly to the UK to the amounted to "false information". "I want to be very clear and reiterate our will, which is that there is only one negotiator and only one mandate," Macron said. The Daily Telegraph reported that France and other EU nations had signalled they were willing to begin Brexit trade talks as early as October.