Some important news for our members:
1. Elections Bill 2021
The Bill completed its
Parliamentary passage last week and has now received Royal assent. This
gives all UK citizens born in the UK and living abroad the right to vote
in general elections and referendums, irrespective of how long they
have lived outside the UK. The mechanics of registration and voting will
be the subject of secondary legislation and we will press for this to
be introduced as soon as possible, in case the PM calls a snap election.
We
have to say that this welcome development is somewhat tarnished by
other elements of the Bill that appear to undermine democracy. These
include ID requirements that may effectively prevent many of the most
disadvantaged members of society from exercising the vote, removal of
the independence of the electoral commission and restrictions on
campaigning, amongst others.
From
1 May it will be illegal for holders of UK driving licences who have
more than 6 months residency in Spain to drive with such licences. We
understand that the British Embassy remains in discussions with Spanish
officials to secure a regime where UK licences can easily be exchanged
for Spanish ones.
However, for the time being, application for a Spanish
licence must be undertaken as for a first time applicant, ie by taking a
driving test. We cannot imagine that many, if any, of the EuroCitizens
group find themselves impacted by this, however, you can obtain more
information through the following link
