After a cabinet meeting last Friday, 11 January 2019, the Spanish government announced their contingency plans for Spanish and British citizens affected by Brexit. EuroCitizens welcomes this move and eagerly looks forward to seeing the measures, which will be published on a government website (see link below).The government has been working for some time on plans for a no-deal Brexit, both in the area of commerce and of citizens. Three kinds of measures will be taken:
- legislative action: a bill (Decreto Ley) in February to enable changes to be made to current laws and additional measures added
- logistical action: additional resources in areas such as customs and immigration
- communication: a website to provide information for citizens and businesses affected
Government spokeswoman Isabel Celaá gave a strong message of reassurance to all concerned that, even in the undesirable event of a no-deal Brexit, measures have been taken to avoid dislocation for both people and companies.
The government announced that they will 'broadly preserve the rights of citizens who took their decisions believing in the European Project'. This will affect legal British residents in Spain whose rights to live and work will be guaranteed as will their healthcare and social security benefits. Political rights in local elections, for both Spaniards in the UK and Britons in Spain, will be protected via a bilateral agreement that is being worked on by both governments and would give citizens the right to vote and stand as councillors.
EuroCitizens and other British in Europe groups in Spain need to analyse the specific measures that are taken before we can evaluate them. However, this is another very positive move forward after previous declarations from minister Borrell and Prime Minister Sánchez that a cliff-edge for citizens will definitely be avoided. Remember that this protection will only be valid for legally registered Britons and that, if you are not fully registered, do so as soon as possible.
Link to Spanish Govt website:
http://www.lamoncloa.gob.es/lang/en/brexit/howtoprepare/Paginas/20190110pre-spain.aspx
