Marine Le Pen: Every country should hold UK-style referendum

Far-right MEP Marine Le Pen has promised to hold a Brexit-style referendum in France within six months of coming to power if elected President next year.

Marine Le Pen has promised to hold a referendum on France's EU membership if elected President | Photo credit: European Parliament audiovisual

By Julie Levy-Abegnoli

22 Jun 2016


Far-right MEP Marine Le Pen has told French television TF1 that she would vote for Brexit if she was a British citizen. She added that, "France has 1000 more reasons to leave the EU, because we are subjected to Schengen and the Euro."

She said she believes every country in the bloc should hold a referendum on their EU membership, and vowed that if elected in next year's presidential elections, she will hold a vote on France's EU membership "within six months" of coming to power.

The first round of France's presidential elections will take place next April, with polls predicting that Le Pen is guaranteed a place in the second round.

The Co-Chair of the European Parliament's Europe of Nations and Freedom group - Parliament's smallest and newest grouping - said, "the EU is decaying. There are cracks everywhere." She called on heads of state to, "sit around a table and build a Europe of nations to replace totalitarian Europe."

Le Pen added, "Europe is moving forward against our will. Who should have the last word? The system, or people?" She added that the last EU referendum held in France was 11 years ago, when the French voted against an EU constitution, which was later rebranded as the Lisbon treaty.

The MEP, who sits on Parliament's international trade committee, has long been a staunch opponent of immigration, Schengen and the single currency.

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