Top Eurocrat says he’s an Anglophile who eats marmalade and drives an Aston Martin despite his tough line on Brexit
Guy Verhofstadt, the European Parliament's Brexit negotiator, is attempting to paint himself as passionately pro-British
EU BREXIT negotiator Guy Verhofstadt has claimed to be an Anglophile - despite pledging to hit back at Britain over Brexit.
The firebrand Eurocrat has revealed that he regularly eats marmalade from Britain, and drives an Aston Martin.
Mr Verhofstadt, the former prime minister of Belgium, is known for his Euro-fanatic views.
As the European Parliament's main representative on Brexit, he has taken a hard line against Britain, accusing UK politicians of having "illusions" about the country's future outside the EU.
But in a newspaper interview about his daily routine, Mr Verhofstadt attempted to assure voters that he is a fan of all things British.
He told The Sunday Times Magazine: "I’m a fan of British orange marmalade; it is a constant presence in my life.
"I have an enormous and deep respect for Britain’s capacity to produce it just right — not too sweet, so it still has that bitter taste."
He also revealed that as part of his collection of "historic cars" he owns a British-made Aston Martin, although he added that it is too delicate to use on his daily commute from Ghent to Brussels.
Mr Verhofstadt said: "Most mornings I’m in meetings or debates in parliament, although at the moment I’m travelling around Europe a lot, too.
"I visit Britain often. I was there with my wife recently.
"We went to a motorsport show and then to Oxford, where Dominique’s father used to be an economics professor."
He insisted that the outcome of the General Election would have no effect on Brexit talks, saying: "Nothing will change if the Conservatives win a bigger majority."
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Mr Verhofstadt said he intended to fight for the interests of Britons as well as citizens of other EU countries.
And he also revealed that although he gave up cigars after having a heart operations 12 years, he still drinks a glass of Italian wine every evening.
"Life’s too short to drink bad wine," he joked.
Mr Verhofstadt, who leads the liberal grouping in the European Parliament, has previously said that Britain must not be allowed to hold on to EU membership benefits after Brexit.
He has vowed to remove European agencies from the UK, and attacked Tory politicians for their attitude towards Brexit talks.