France’s right-wing National Front (FN) party called for a referendum to determine the country’s membership in the European Union on Thursday, drawing parallels with the U.K.’s call for a membership vote, reports the International Business Times.
Florian Philippot, FN deputy leader and European Parliament member, said that French President François Hollande should “follow the British example.”
“The time has come to ask everybody in Europe Yes or No - if they want sovereignty to decide on their own future,” Philippot said.
He later echoed the call on Twitter. "Like the British, the French deserve a referendum on the European Union."
On Thursday, the U.K.’s Conservative Party, which swept to victory in May’s general elections on a euroskeptic platform, published its question for the referendum it plans to hold by 2017: "Should the UK remain a member of the EU?"
The FN, which has made significant gains in local and European elections in recent years, currently holds 2 seats in the national assembly and 23 in the European Parliament, despite several allegations of xenophobia and racism against its members.
Philippot warned that if Hollande did not raise the possibility of a referendum, the FN would put it at “the heart” of the election campaign of FN leader Marine Le Pen, who will contest the 2017 presidential elections, the EU Observer reported.
Read more of this report from the International Business Times.