CALAIS, France (AP) – The French government on Friday issued a favorable light on a report by the British prime minister’s father to take up French nationality, saying it shows how close Britons are to the European Union. is no longer part of.
Reports that Stanley Johnson, the father of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, is trying to keep a foot in Europe by taking up French citizenship made headlines just as his son was leading Britain’s split from the EU on Thursday. Britain leaves the huge European market for people, goods and services at 23:00 London time on New Year’s Eve.
France’s European Affairs Minister Clément Beaune visited Calais on Friday to examine how the French port was adapting to Brexit, and the civilian application as a sign of continued British sentiment for Europe.
“If Johnson’s father has the right to French nationality, wants to remain a European citizen and become a French citizen, we will investigate,” he said. “To me, it’s a wink or a sign that many British people still like Europe in different ways.”
“There are a lot of people in the UK for whom this is also a sad day,” Beaune added.
Elder Johnson, 80, is a former member of the European Parliament who supported the EU’s support in the 2016 EU referendum. He has since expressed support for his son when the prime minister led the UK out of the bloc.
The French nationality would give Elder Johnson the automatic rights that other Britons have now lost, including the fact that they can travel and live freely in all 27 EU countries.
Stanley Johnson told broadcaster RTL on Thursday that he was “regaining” his French identity.
“It’s not a matter of becoming French. If I understand correctly, I am French. My mother was born in France. Her mother was completely French, just like her grandfather, “he told RTL. “So for me, it’s a matter of reclaiming what I already have.”
“I will always be a European. That’s for sure, ”said Stanley Johnson. ‘You can not say to the English:’ You are not a European. ‘Europe is always more than the common market, more than the European Union. ” ___
John Leicester in Le Pecq, France, contributed.