So France is going to cut off the electricity supply to parts of the UK

[Orangejuicemarathoner]

Or so they say, the Channel Islands in 2 weeks.

Really? How have we got to this?

How do we protect the channel Islands, and of course, ourselves.

This was my biggest concern preBrexit, that we would be out of the EU ultragrid.

We need to be totally self sufficient - obviously that means renewables, and very fast

As reported by an Anglophone in France..
www.thelocal.fr/20210505/analysis-is-france-really-about-to-cut-off-electricity-to-the-tiny-island-of-jersey-over-fish/

There are a number of subtleties here.. and several sides to this story.

Beware of the media creating a bogeyman in Macron ... it is a useful prop to create noise to disguise things like the fuel problems, the coronavirus cases, awarding big contracts to their friends, illogical travel rules.. See beyond the spin.

@JasonMomoasgirlfriend

Macron is such a horrible bastard.

This, can’t stand him.

@MythicalBiologicalFennel

Oooh we hadn't had a EU-bashing thread for a while.

Who's the baddie now? Junker? Barnier? Ursula? Macron?

Plenty of dead cats around though. Going to be stockpiling them soon 🙄

I think Macron’s competence has Johnson rattled. His speech today was described as ‘vacuous’ by industry leaders.

Anyone who automatically assumes that the UK is completely innocent and this is just the french being “mean” need to have a long hard look at themselves and the current government to be honest.

This government cocked up its management of Brexit and was too busy trying to concoct good headlines instead of rolling up their sleeves and doing a decent job of it. Headlines mean fuck all.

So if the french truly mean this, then it’s on Boris Johnson as far as I’m concerned.

@Ozanj

It would be illegal and the UK government would have the right to take the grid over if that happened, losing those companies billions. It isn’t a realistic threat in anyway and I bet the companies involved are furious for being brought into what is a political matter.

Our energy supply is privatised and we get a significant proportion of our energy from overseas.

@IpanemaPeaHen

I think Macron’s competence has Johnson rattled. His speech today was described as ‘vacuous’ by industry leaders.

Emmanuel, is that you?

In all seriousness, Macron is currently leading and driving France's disputes with:

The USA
The UK
(incl specifically the Channel Islands)
Australia
Mali
Algeria
Turkey
and probably more.

Competence isn't the word I would use.

The worse thing is that the Channel Islands are not in the UK and had no say over Brexit. They were not part of the vote

Thats because they have never been part of the EU.

“ In all seriousness, Macron is currently leading and driving France's disputes with:

The USA
The UK
(incl specifically the Channel Islands)
Australia”

And In the case of the above countries so he should, given that the jury is very much still out on who precipitated some of the disputes that they and France are arguing over.

I appreciate the DM default is that since he is should French he simply acquiesce to the Anglo-Saxon POV but Mr Macron was elected to and is paid to represent his country’s interest.

This is why we should be self reliant.

@waybill

We could always threaten to stop importing their champagne, their brie and camembert, their apples and their wine.

Hardly comparable to electricity, and simply cutting off our own noses.

What a diplomatic failure.

Amused to see all the talk of France bullying the UK, when the UK tried to do precisely that to Ireland during the Brexit negotiations. What goes around, comes around.

France regularly “bullies” Ireland too with French fishing boats on occasion threatening to block Cherbourg ( main route to Ireland) plus it affects the land bridge from English ports like Dover to Ireland too. Plus French fishing boats are regularly picked up illegally in Irish waters and that will increase if they are no longer allowed to fish in U.K. waters. Irish fisherman are not particularly happy with French ones!
I remember driving home via Caen once and French fisherman had set tyres on fire all over the motorway into Caen. Not a dispute with the U.K. but with the French government. Another year it was the farmers causing havoc.

I remember driving home via Caen once and French fisherman had set tyres on fire all over the motorway into Caen. Not a dispute with the U.K. but with the French government. Another year it was the farmers causing havoc.

The joke about striking/protesting here being the national sport isn’t really a joke, it’s an observation. Odd years farmers, even years somebody else…even health workers will often strike but it’s all cunningly arranged so as appointments generally aren’t cancelled.

Ultimately the right to protest is pretty much sacrosanct and if you’re not involved you learn to (sometimes literally) work around it…

It keeps the politicians slightly scared…..

Sums up why we should never rely on any other country. political blackmail is just too easy

^This

Macron throwing his toys out of the pram again.

Some detail to add context to this story...

France is vaguely talking about cutting off electricity to Jersey only. Not any of the Bailiwick of Guernsey islands.

This is about fishing rights. The Jersey government hasn't acted well here either.

Also, the Channel Islands are not part of the UK and have never been part of the EU. They are made up of two Crown Dependencies, which are are to all intents and purposes administered separately to each other. There is no political entity called 'the Channel Islands'; this is a geographical description only (like 'the British Isles').

I see what you're saying, and Macron is definitely acting like a man with an election coming up. (And quite frankly, given that his opposition is Le Pen, I'm rather hoping he wins even though I don't agree with him on everything.)

But to say that France is threatening to cut off power to 'parts of the UK' is totally incorrect, and misleading.

I think it’s a bit late to be trying to introduce facts to this thread bloodystupidjohnson.

Did Macron actually say this this time or is it Clement Beaune again?

I don’t remember quite so much outrage when it was the U.K. writing into law the ability to take over C.I. fishing water to use as a bargaining chip in the brexit negotiations.

What I want to know is will the U.K. be sending a gun boat to sort it out again?

That was a brilliant piece of theatre last time.

What a performance from Bozo the Magnificent at the conference. Just waiting for him to master the Rabbit out of a Hat together with a Flock of Doves and he might be worth hiring for a kid's party. Ah well. "Fuck business". Who needs it?