Farage and Bardella Sign Migration Pact Amid Lingering Doubts

France's Jordan Bardella and Britain's Nigel Farage presented a united front against immigration at Reform UK's annual conference, signing a memorandum of understanding to tackle cross-channel migration. The joint appearance aimed to showcase populist kinship, but the agreement's specifics on migrant returns left lingering questions.

The memorandum, signed by both leaders, states that France will 'ordinarily accept' migrants intercepted in the English Channel while attempting to reach the UK. However, the wording has been described as 'legalese' by Farage, and a National Rally official indicated that the French translation is the definitive version, suggesting potential flexibility for Paris to reject migrants.

Farage invoked Australia's 2012 policy as a model to break the business model of human traffickers. Bardella, in his speech, emphasized that if France controls its borders, there will be no departures, and that pushbacks would signify a failure of his government. He also pledged that France would no longer be a gateway for illegal migration into the United Kingdom.

The agreement is non-binding unless both parties come to power. The National Rally has a long-standing commitment to hold a referendum on its immigration plans in France, a process that could face significant hurdles. Farage, whose event was also marked by allegations of illegal party funding, compared the pact to a 'genuine new Entente Cordiale'.