A foreign diplomatic source told The Telegraph that Rishi Sunak had “caused havoc”. Photo: Yui Mok/PA
Britain and Spain are embroiled in a diplomatic row after Rishi Sunak demanded that illegal migration be the focus of a meeting of European leaders next week.
The Prime Minister wants that the European Political Community (EPC) summit make this issue its top priority. as it continues to try to deal with the crisis on the Channel crossings.
But Madrid is resisting the demand, instead wanting the meeting of nearly 50 leaders to focus on artificial intelligence, the war in Ukraine and graduate mobility.
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A foreign diplomatic source told The Telegraph that Mr Sunak had «caused chaos » and that French officials were brought in to mediate between the parties.
«The British are starting to wreak havoc over the next EPC,» the source said. “They want to revise the whole agenda, replacing it with migration, which is not on the agenda today. They are using what happened in the Mediterranean to try to impose their own agenda in the English Channel.»
A second European diplomat said Britain had «insisted» on changing the agenda, but said those efforts “We weren’t going to go anywhere.”
Illegal migration is becoming a growing problem throughout Europe. Giorgia Meloni, Italy's prime minister, warned that leaders need a «paradigm shift» to cope with the mass arrivals from Africa.
2809 Italy — main entry point
Her comments came after more than 10,000 migrants arrived on the tiny Sicilian island of Lampedusa, prompting several EU member states to introduce new border controls in response.
The European Commission this week warned EU member states to introduce new controls only as a «last resort» amid concerns that the bloc's Schengen free movement area is coming under significant pressure from large numbers of arrivals migrants.
Emmanuel Macron, the French president, called for greater international cooperation to tackle the influx of arrivals from North Africa, suggesting Paris could also push for future talks on the issue.
Other European leaders backed Mr Sunak's call for actions to combat illegal immigration, including Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission.
Speaking during a trip to Lampedusa earlier this month, she said: “I came here to tell you all: migration is a European problem that requires a European solution.”
But Spain is perceived as less significant . is concerned, especially since migrants arriving on its shores often move on to other countries in Europe.
2,809 arrivals are the highest since 2016
Relations between Mr Sunak and his European counterparts appear to be deteriorating ahead of next year's general election, while Sir Keir Starmer, the Labor leader, tries to forge new alliances.
Third EPC meeting, including 27 EU member states plus 20 other countries will be held in Granada, Spain, on October 5. Downing Street confirmed the Prime Minister intends to attend the one-day summit, with Britain set to hold a fourth scheduled meeting next year. spring.
Spanish diplomats have told their British counterparts that London will have ample opportunity to open talks on small vessels when it holds its fourth meeting, the source said.
A senior UK government source said Spain had consistently been uninterested in discussions on how to tackle illegal migration, saying: «They are the least interested of any European country on this issue.»
Mr Sunak has made stopping small boats crossing the English Channel one of his five priorities . More than 20,000 migrants have made this journey this year, although this is less than last year.
Tension between the Prime Minister and the Spanish leadership emerged shortly after Sir Keir embarked on a three-stop global trip to meet other world leaders.
The Labor leader revealed his own plan to create small boats in The Hague before the meeting. Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, then visited Paris for talks with Mr Macron.
Meanwhile, Suella Braverman warns that migration is putting «unsustainable» pressure on housing, the NHS and schools.
The Home Secretary has stepped up warnings about the impact of migration in the face of a backlash from refugee groups, charities and even some Tory MPs who criticized her «unhelpful», «poorly judged» and «emotional» remarks as distracting from her legitimate message. .
After criticizing the «outdated» UN Refugee Convention for creating «huge incentives» for illegal migration, she warned that legal migration was also contributing to unsustainable pressure on public services in the UK.
Ms Braverman insists on Rishi Sunak taking further action to curb legal migration, whose net influx has reached a record 606,000.
“We are right to ask for greater cooperation internationally among like-minded partners. and ultimately the UK cannot sustain this level of illegal migration or even legal migration,” she told PA in an interview during her three-day trip to the US.
“There is unsustainable pressure on our schools, unsustainable pressure on our health services, unsustainable pressure on our housing options. This is the right thing to do, and it is indeed smart for political leaders to speak up and take steps to address this problem.”
She denied she lacked compassion after claiming British culture would disappear if immigration remained unchecked. . She warned it posed an «existential» threat to Western countries.
She also said it was «frivolous» to suggest she was in Washington, D.C., to boost her profile as the next conservative leader. «With all due respect, this is a slightly frivolous interpretation of a very serious issue,» she said.
But there was concern at home that her remarks threatened to undermine her legitimate argument that the UN Refugee Convention needs to be reformed.
Ms Braverman said the refugee definition had become too broad and should be tightened. Calling the convention outdated, Braverman said it should not be used to provide protection to people who fear discrimination in their home country simply because they are gay or female.
Sir Bob Neil, chairman of the House of Commons Justice Committee, said the Home Secretary was right to call for a rethinking of the Convention, which had become about providing asylum for those who had been victims of discrimination rather than the original terms of persecution.
“ The wording was: very useless because the examples were chosen clumsily. Talk of existential threats has reduced confidence in the larger issue,” he said.
«The language and tone were poorly judged, which is unfortunate as she wanted to raise a serious issue that we all need to deal with.
«This is an emotional topic so we should avoid getting emotional about it on both sides discussions. When you start expressing this in highly emotional rhetoric, both sides pretty much shut down the discussion. We are not taken seriously because we are seen as hooligans.”
The former minister said: “It was a legitimate speech from the Home Secretary, but she embellished it and it is unclear why she did it.” do it in the US.»
One MP told Sky News her language was «uncomfortably right-wing» and another, responding to Ms Braverman's claim that multiculturalism had failed, said: «She maybe f**king go away and do it in the backseat.»
She also faced criticism from Sir Elton John, who warned that her suggestion that gayness itself should not guarantee the protection of refugees, “legitimizes hatred and violence.” against LGBT+ people.
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