At a meeting of European Union (EU) ministers on Tuesday, France and Germany said they were concerned over reforms of the Polish judicial system, which are regarded as politically intimidating for the country's courts and a threat to their independence, voicing their support for EU Commission infringement procedures which could in theory result in Poland losing its EU voting rights.
After days of tough talking which cast doubt over France's agreement to British Prime Minister Theresa May's request for an extension of the Brexit deadline due this Friday, an official in French President Emmanuel Macron’s office said Tuesday that France was ready to accept a new delay.
British Prime Minister Theresa May flew to Paris from Berlin on Tuesday, having earlier met German Chancellor Angela Merkel, to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron in a bid to convince the two leaders to grant a delay for the UK withdrawal from the European Union which is currently on a deadline for Friday.
French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe on Monday announced the closure of the 12-million-euro series of nationwide consultations of citizens' grievances with government policies, held in town hall meetings and online and prompted by the so-called 'yellow vest' protest movement over falling living standards, when he defined the principal demands as being a broad lowering of taxes, a halt to the decline in public services in some regions, greater democratic consultation and more positive action over environmental concerns.
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