French would also vote to leave EU if asked same question as Britons, Macron says

In an interview on BBC One's The Andrew Marr Show, French president Emmanuel Macron said that, if given a similar "yes or no" opportunity, France would likely vote to leave the European Union.

Macron said Westminster had taken a big risk by asking the British people to give a simple "yes or no" answer to "a very complicated subject".

When asked if he believed the French would choose to leave the EU in the same way, he said, "Yes. Probably, in a similar context. But our context was very different, so I don't want to take any bets. I would have definitely fought to win."

"But I think it is a mistake to just ask yes or no when you don’t ask people how to improve the situation and to explain how to improve it," he added.

On the future of the relationship between the UK and the EU, Macron said, it would "by definition" be weaker than it had been, given that the deepest possible relation was with both nations being member states of the European Union.

"As you decided to leave, you cannot be part of the single market. But in function of the nature of the negotiation, you can have some deeper relations and some others. For instance, we have a deeper relation with Norway than the one we have with Canada," Macron said.

Discussing Britain's desire for a "bespoke" deal, Macron said that although the UK would have its own solution, "this special way should be consistent with the preservation of the single market and our collective interests."

"And you should understand that you cannot, by definition, have the full access to the single market if you don't tick the box. And to get full access to the single market you need contribution to the budget, and you have to accept the freedoms, and the four pillars, and you have to accept the jurisdiction. As soon as you decide not to join these preconditions it’s not a full access. So it’s something perhaps between this full access and a trade agreement," he continued.

In terms of access to the EU's single market for UK financial services, Macron said full access for financial services to the single market would not be feasible given the way the single market operated.

When asked if he felt a passporting deal was off the table, Macron said "It depends on what you're ready to put on the table in terms of precondition. If you respect the precondition to get access to the single market, it's feasible. But there is not cherry-picking in the single market. Because it's not feasible. Because otherwise, that’s a dismantling of the single market."

Macron was then asked if he was willing to take the risk of the EU being cut off from London's markets.

Macron replied, "My willingness is not precisely to unplug, as you say, the British City, I think it doesn't make sense. Because it's part of the whole financing of our European Union. But for sure, if there is no change in terms of full access to the financial single market it doesn't make sense for the other."