The financial passport is part of full access to the E.U. market, and a precondition for that is the contribution to the E.U. budget. That has been the case in Norway and in Switzerland. That is clear.

I want France to become the European hub for R&D.

A romantic or classical view of the French approach would have been to say, 'It's a French company; let no one attack it. Let's block any merger. But the reality is Alcatel-Lucent is not a French company; it's a global company. Its main markets are China and the U.S. Its ownership is foreign; most of its managers aren't French.

We have a huge responsibility to make sure that Europe remains a prosperous and peaceful continent.

Europe's younger generation has only experienced austerity.

The doctors, whether based in Brussels or Paris, draw the same conclusions and write the same prescriptions.

France is back.

What we need is a common goal for more Europe.

De facto, you have a multi-speed Europe. You look at the Schengen, you look at the euro zone, all this kind of cooperations, you have a multi-speed Europe.

The functioning of our society is in a certain way sclerotic.

Honesty compels me to say that I am not a socialist. But so what?

If approval was a criterion in this country, nothing would ever get done.

Sovereignty is not just at the national level; that's the mistake of Brexit that other people make.

We need to restore democracy and sovereignty in Europe.

The best way to afford a suit is to work.

I learned the life of business, commerce - it's an art.

If people do not believe in Europe and in the euro area, it must be dismantled.

The refugee crisis is a challenge for the whole of Europe, and Europe - it's a very fair point to say it's not just a security issue. It's also an economic issue.

What we need is much more flexibility for the labour markets.

If the U.K. wants a commercial access treaty to the European market, the British must contribute to the European budget like the Norwegians and the Swiss do. If London doesn't want that, then it must be a total exit.

I want to be the president of all the people of France, for the patriots facing the threat of nationalism.

If I was British, I would vote resolutely 'remain' because it's in the U.K.'s interest.

I'm a child of provincial France.

Leaving the E.U. would mean the 'Guernseyfication' of the U.K., which would then be a little country on the world scale. It would isolate itself and become a trading post and arbitration place at Europe's border.