Macron will not seek to 'punish' UK over Brexit

Incoming French President Emmanuel Macron will hold a "tough" line during Brexit negotiations but will not seek to "punish" Britain, his chief economic adviser said yesterday.

"I don't think anybody has an interest in a hard Brexit," Jean Pisani-Ferry told the BBC.

"There is a mutual interest in keeping prosperity that exists and has built over the years... and obviously also the security and defence relationship, which is extremely important."

Macron, who campaigned on a pro-EU platform, has previously called Brexit a "crime" and said that Britain should continue paying into the EU budget if it wants access to the European single market.

British businesses have warned against a "hard Brexit", which would sever ties with Europe's single market and force Britain to trade with the bloc according to World Trade Organisation minimum tariffs.

Outgoing President Hollande and Macron attend a ceremony to mark the end of World War II at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. Photo: Reuters

When asked if he would still seek to make Britain pay, Pisani-Ferry replied: "Punish? Certainly not. but he believes that even today Europe is part of the solution to the problems we are facing."

The advisor, who is expected to get a senior role in the new government, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that Macron would still be a formidable adversary during negotiations.

Marine Le Pen is seen on a screen while conceding defeat at the Chalet du Lac in the Bois de Vincennes in Paris. Photo: Reuters

"We have divergent interests on some aspects of the negotiations, so there will be a tough negotiation and he will be tough," he said.

"As grown ups on both sides, we can manage to settle the exit negotiation and to build up a relationship," he added.