The French President has told Boris Johnson the EU will not tear up the Brexit deal negotiated by Theresa May.

Emmanuel Macron told the Prime Minister in Paris there could not be a "reshuffling" of the Withdrawal Agreement - but he left open the possibility of making some changes to the deal.

He backed the 30-day timescale suggested by German leader Angela Merkel on Wednesday for the UK to come forward with its proposals but warned the Irish backstop - the major stumbling block - was indispensable.

"We will not find a new Withdrawal Agreement within 30 days that will be very different from the existing one," he said as he spoke alongside the Prime Minister at Elysee Palace.

In an effort to avoid the EU being blamed if a no-deal Brexit is the outcome on October 31, he said failure to reach an acceptable deal would be "a political decision to be taken by the Prime Minister, it's not our decision".

Mr Johnson has demanded the backstop - a contingency plan aimed at ensuring a soft border with Ireland in all circumstances - should be scrapped.

Mr Macron said the Withdrawal Agreement and Irish backstop are "not just technical constraints or legal quibbling" but are "genuine, indispensable guarantees" to preserve stability in Ireland and the integrity of the single market.

He said the EU had "always said that it was available to discuss, depending on the wishes of the UK, our future relationship".

The two leaders were speaking ahead of their formal talks at the Elysee.

Mr Johnson stressed while he wants an agreement, the UK "must come out of the EU on October 31 - deal or no-deal".

He insisted alternatives to the backstop could be found as "where there's a will, there's a way".

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday she had not set Britain a 30-day deadline to find a solution for the so-called Irish backstop, saying they could also have time until October 31, when Britain is due to leave the European Union.

"I said that what one can achieve in three or two years can also be achieved in 30 days. Better said, one must say that one can also achieve it by October 31," Merkel told a news conference in the Hague.

Merkel had suggested on Wednesday that Britain and the EU could find a solution to the sticking point of the Irish backstop in the next 30 days, a possible signal she was willing to compromise with Prime Minister Boris Johnson.