Boris Johnson's father applying for a French passport 'to keep EU links'
The former MEP, whose son was the face of the Brexit Leave campaign, says he will "always be a European".
Thursday 31 December 2020 18:49, UK
Prime Minister Boris Johnson's father has revealed he is applying for a French passport to maintain聽ties with the EU post-Brexit.
Stanley Johnson, a former member of the European Parliament, who voted Remain in Britain's 2016 referendum, told RTL radio he wanted to become a French citizen because of strong family links to France.
He told the host, in French: "If I understand it correctly, I am French - my mother was born in France, her mother was totally French as was her grandfather.
"So for me it is about reclaiming what I already have. And that makes me very happy."
Mr Johnson's son Boris was the public face of the Leave campaign in the 2016 referendum and has said he believes Britain can "prosper mightily" as a fully sovereign nation outside what he sees as an overly bureaucratic EU.
But on Wednesday, as the Brexit deal was voted through parliament by MPs, the prime minister sounded a more
conciliatory note saying: "This is not the end of Britain as a European country.
"We are in many ways the quintessential European civilisation... and we will continue to be that."
Mr Johnson senior echoed his sentiment, adding: "I will always be a European, that's for sure. One cannot tell the British people: you are not Europeans."
But he also added: "Having a tie with the European Union is important."
The UK officially leaves the EU on New Year's Eve. Find out how these changes will affect Britons.