Emmanuel Macron and Boris Johnson and spent a weekend exchanging private WhatsApp messages about allowing quarantine-free travel between Britain and France – blindsiding officials on both sides of the Channel, who had been kept out of the loop. The Mail on Sunday has learnt the Prime Minister and French President regularly converse over the messaging service, away from the prying eyes of aides. After the EU warned about singling out one member of the bloc, No 10 officials claimed the statement had been misinterpreted. However, Ministers are scrambling to keep the vital cross-Channel trade route flowing. A Government source admitted: ‘Boris and Macron overcooked it a bit with the WhatsApp diplomacy.’

Source: Daily Mail May 16, 2020 21:04 UTC