Francois Hollande tells Britain it must 'play its part' in resolving the migrant crisis as he announces the Calais camp must be 'completely dismantled'
- Francois Hollande is visiting Calais today and the Jungle migrant camp
- The French president has announced it will be 'completely dismantled'
- He says the camp will be removed soon and happen 'before the winter'
- Hollande also called on the UK to do its part in resolving the migrant crisis
French president Francois Hollande has told Britain to play its part in resolving the migrant crisis after announcing the Calais 'Jungle' will be completely dismantled.
Hollande is on his first visit to Calais as president and will go to the notorious camp today where thousands of desperate migrants, mainly from Sudan and Afghanistan, want to go to Britain and try to stow away on lorries heading across the Channel.
Under pressure from the right wing, the French leader has stepped up his own pledge to combat illegal migration, promising to 'completely dismantle' the Jungle camp, home to 10,000 migrants.
French president Francois Hollande makes a speech during a visit to the Gendarmerie of Calais on a visit to the port town
His government has said this will happen 'before winter' and a flurry of preparations under way there suggest the operation may begin shortly.
And during a speech today to local gendarmerie while flanked by security forces, Hollande also added: 'I am determined to see British authorities play their part in the humanitarian effort that France is undertaking here.'
'The situation is unacceptable and everyone here knows it. We must dismantle the camp completely and definitively.'
But plans to relocate the migrants have sparked controversy and protests, with local residents in areas where new shelters could be established vehemently opposed to the move.
The Jungle camp has also become a sore point in relations between France and Britain.
Last week, building work began on a British-funded wall to clamp down on repeated attempts by migrants to stow away on trucks heading for Britain.
Rights groups have also strongly criticised the difficulties and dangers facing the up to 10,000 migrants living in the camp, with a 14-year-old Afghan boy killed by a car just last week as he tried to get onto a truck.
He also told Britain to play its part in resolving the migrant crisis after announcing the Calais 'Jungle' will be completely dismantled
The president's visit comes just days after one by his conservative predecessor Nicolas Sarkozy - who is hoping to make a comeback as president
The president's visit comes just days after one by his conservative predecessor Nicolas Sarkozy - who is hoping to make a comeback as president, with a harsh line on migration a key part of his campaign.
While in the port city he will meet with police, local politicians, business leaders and representatives from civil society groups, but he is not expected to visit the camp itself.
Migration has been a low-key issue under Hollande's four-year-old presidency.
But he has been forced to take a visible stance on the issue, under pressure from brash right-winger Sarkozy and far-right leader Marine Le Pen.
Each are promoting platforms of security, patriotism and national interest in early campaigning for next year's elections.
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