The current favourite to become president in the French election could spell bad news for the UK government in talks on Brexit should he win. If Emmanuel Macron succeeds in the second round on 7 May, which he is currently favourite to do, he is likely to drive a hard bargain in Brexit negotiations. The former economy minister, who resigned to campaign for change, has been an outspoken critic of the UK’s decision to leave the EU. In his election manifesto he described Brexit as a “crime” that will leave the UK facing “servitude”.

The independent centrist favours a hard Brexit that would leave the UK outside of the single market, and has stressed the importance of “defending the integrity” of the EU’s intertwined freedoms of movement and trade. Negotiations would undoubtedly be tougher with a President Macron at the table, as he has already warned that there can be no “caveat or waiver” to the EU’s “unbreakable” position of defending its own interests first. In an interview shortly after announcing his candidacy, he said that British voters’ choice to leave the 28-nation EU must be respected, but that the UK should not be given special treatment.(guardian)…[+]