Various diplomatic disputes between Britain and France have developed since the summer. Tensions over trade policy, fishing rights and migrant crossings have seen the British and French governments publicly exchanging cross words.
Now the latest YouGov EuroTrack data shows a sharp decline in the two nations’ respective favourability.
In August, a third of French people (33%) said they had an unfavourable view of Britain. This figure has since risen to 42% by mid-November. At the same time, the number of French people with a positive view of Britons fell from 53% to 46%.
Britons are likewise taking an increasingly critical view of France, with the number holding an unfavourable view rising from 31% to 40% and the number holding a favourable view falling from 56% to 47%.
Increasingly negative views of Britain aren’t restricted to the French. In both Spain and Germany people are more hostile towards Britain than they were in the summer. Half of Spaniards (50%) now have an overall unfavourable opinion of Great Britain, which has drastically increased from 38% in August. The change in Germany is more modest, with the number of Germans holding an unfavourable opinion of Britain increasing from 41% to 45% since the summer, matched by a four point drop in favourable opinion to 43%.
It is worth noting that Spanish attitudes towards France have also worsened, with positive sentiment falling from 79% to 73%. German opinions remain consistent, however.
