The UK government has been accused of forgetting about the million-plus British citizens living on the continent as it emerged that neither Theresa May, David Davis nor Dominic Raab have once met with their representatives since the Brexit process began, writes Jon Stone in the Independent.
On the EU side, Barnier and Brexit co-ordinator Verhofstadt have given British in Europe – the umbrella group representing UK citizens living in the EU – multiple audiences, up-dating them on the status of negotiations.
Despite repeated requests for meetings, since the referendum, the group has yet to secure any time with the senior figures on the UK side, with overtures “either refused or ignored”.
May has recently assured EU citizens living in the UK that they would be allowed to stay, in the event of no deal, but she again failed to address the plight of the estimated 1.2m British citizens in the EU – who potentially face huge upheaval. The government says it gave the citizens’ group, which has 30,000 supporters, a meeting with a junior minister, Robin Walker, and that British citizens will be able to “continue their lives 'broadly' as now”.
However, despite the rosy view painted by the government, British migrants say they still have huge concerns, about their future, that they have not had an opportunity to air in high-level meetings.
The draft withdrawal agreement offers some protections for Britons already citizens in the EU – such as the ability to remain in their country and recognition for their professional qualifications, but it also “country-locks” most people, who won’t have the right to work across borders – even if their jobs currently take them all over the EU, as many business and professional rôles do.
To read the conclusion, click on: 'Theresa May and her Brexit secretaries have refused to meet representatives of British citizens in EU for two years'
