European Parliament slams UK offer to EU expats
- 7 years ago
The European Parliament’s chief Brexit negotiator has told Britain to improve its offer for EU citizens – or face having it rejected.
Guy Verhofstadt says the UK’s proposal to give EU citizens “settled status” is a damp squib.
In a joint op-ed titled “Improve the Brexit offer to EU citizens, or we’ll veto the deal,” he and leaders of four of the parliament’s main groups said British Prime Minister Theresa May’s plan offered EU expats in the UK fewer rights than Britons in the EU.
“If implemented, it would cast a dark cloud of vagueness and uncertainty over the lives of millions of Europeans,” he wrote.
“Europeans will not only lose their right to vote in local elections, but family members will be subject to minimum income requirements, and it is unclear what the status of “post-Brexit” babies would be. This carries a real risk of creating second-class citizenship. The proposal is even in contradiction with the Vote Leave manifesto, which promised to treat EU citizens “no less favourably than they are at present.”
Three million EU citizens are expected to remain in the U.K. after Brexit. The British government says their basic rights will be preserved and will build up over the years. But MEPs fear the new status will be clouded by uncertainty and red tape. They demand more protection and equal treatment.
The UK and the EU now have just over a year and a half to reach a deal. The deadline is March 2019, and Verhofstadt warned an extension would be “unthinkable.”
Via euronews: What will happen to EU citizens in the UK after Brexit? https://t.co/8IAKyShTA4 pic.twitter.com/q7vlhz9xjJ— Dan Koosh (DanKoosh) June 23, 2017
Guy Verhofstadt says the UK’s proposal to give EU citizens “settled status” is a damp squib.
In a joint op-ed titled “Improve the Brexit offer to EU citizens, or we’ll veto the deal,” he and leaders of four of the parliament’s main groups said British Prime Minister Theresa May’s plan offered EU expats in the UK fewer rights than Britons in the EU.
“If implemented, it would cast a dark cloud of vagueness and uncertainty over the lives of millions of Europeans,” he wrote.
“Europeans will not only lose their right to vote in local elections, but family members will be subject to minimum income requirements, and it is unclear what the status of “post-Brexit” babies would be. This carries a real risk of creating second-class citizenship. The proposal is even in contradiction with the Vote Leave manifesto, which promised to treat EU citizens “no less favourably than they are at present.”
Three million EU citizens are expected to remain in the U.K. after Brexit. The British government says their basic rights will be preserved and will build up over the years. But MEPs fear the new status will be clouded by uncertainty and red tape. They demand more protection and equal treatment.
The UK and the EU now have just over a year and a half to reach a deal. The deadline is March 2019, and Verhofstadt warned an extension would be “unthinkable.”
Via euronews: What will happen to EU citizens in the UK after Brexit? https://t.co/8IAKyShTA4 pic.twitter.com/q7vlhz9xjJ— Dan Koosh (DanKoosh) June 23, 2017