BREXIT AND UK NATIONALS IN SPAIN (2): THE HUMAN COST

Madrid Players  madridplayers.org

In recent months, some British politicians have made blithe assertions that UK nationals in the EU have nothing to fear from the Britain's departure from the EU. However, it is clear that they are not aware of our concerns and are not even consulting us, despite the claims of Brexit minister David Davis. For example, EuroCitizens has been attempting to meet up with an all-party parliamentary committee which will be visiting Spain shortly, so far without success. It is important to make UK and European politicians realise that Brexit could have a terrible human cost: forced repatriation, the break-up of families and even the break-up of communities.

Returning to the UK:
A falling pound, any freezing of UK pensions, the loss of rights to reside, work or run a business in Spain are all factors that could potentially force large numbers of expats to relocate back to the UK, forcing them to start afresh in the "old" country where many will feel strangers after a long absence because many of their old friends will have died or moved away and the landscape of the cities and towns they grew up in will have changed. 

The end of expat communities:
Organic communities of UK expatriates, Spaniards and other nationals, have grown up all over Spain with their many charitable associations, amateur dramatic societies, choirs, sports clubs and other interest groups. If these communities become eroded by the enforced return to the UK of many of their members, the trauma of disruption would hit not only those who have to leave against their will but also those who stay behind. The uncertainties of the situation are already causing great concern across the whole expat community in Spain, especially as no one can be certain about what the outcome will be for them personally. A large-scale exodus will also impact on the many plumbers, electricians, gardeners, butchers, bakers and web-page makers who mainly serve the British expat community. Many will also be forced to pack their bags and return to the UK following in the footsteps of their departing customers.
 
Financial ruin:
Enforced return to the UK will be even worse for the victims of the Spanish property slump with many holding negative equity mortgages on houses and flats that are now difficult or impossible to sell. Even those lucky enough to sell, will never be able to be able to acquire a property in the UK anything like the one they sold before moving to Spain, given that property prices in both countries have moved sharply in opposite directions. 

Family break up:
In some cases, some forced returnees may have to leave behind their Spanish-born children and grandchildren.

BREXIT AND UK NATIONALS IN SPAIN: (1) WHAT COULD HAPPEN?

Since the accession of Spain to the European Union in 1986, with the exception of some voting rights, UK citizens in Spain have enjoyed exactly the same rights and obligations as their Spanish neighbours. Our right to live, work, do business, study, marry and have children here has never been questioned. Some of us are even councillors in our local communities. All of this is about to change drastically with the departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union. 

How it could happen:
1. European law or its derogation with regard to UK citizens in Europe as a result of Brexit
2. Agreement or otherwise between the UK and the European Union on the terms of British disengagement
3. Any bilateral agreements between the UK and individual EU countries post-Brexit
4. External factors such as exchange rate movements reflecting political and economic developments
5. Unilateral action by the British government (e.g. policy on pension payments to pensioners who remain in the EU).

The right of abode is not enough:
The principal issue for all UK citizens is the continued right to live in their EU country of adoption (the right to remain as it has been christened elsewhere), as it is for all EU citizens who have made their home in the UK. In most cases, our residence predates the appearance of Article 50 in the Treaty of Lisbon. The rights we currently enjoy and which helped persuade us to move away from our home countries did not have an expiry date stamped on them. We urgently need reassurances about this most basic of rights. Having said that, the right to abode in Spain is meaningless without all the other accompanying rights that make our continued presence in Spain feasible, whether this is the right to work, study, do business or continue to draw the pensions towards which we have contributed throughout our working lives.

The need to make our voice heard:
The Prime Minister has said that “no deal for Britain is better than a bad deal for Britain”. No government would deliberately inflict pain and suffering on its own citizens but it could easily do so unwittingly if it is not made aware of the likely consequences of an uncontrolled Brexit on the UK expat community resident in the European Union.

The best way of doing this is by joining an association of UK nationals in Spain:

EuroCitizens (Madrid) https://www.facebook.com/EuroCitizens-1119482284794200/    

ECREU: http://www.ecreu.com

Bremain in Spain (Valencia) http://www.bremaininspain.com/ 

Brexpats in Spain: http://brexpats.es/

EUROCITIZENS: WE WANT FULL EU CITIZENSHIP RIGHTS, NOT RESIDENCE PERMITS

On 18 February, EuroCitizens held its fifth monthly meeting in Madrid. Our group is making significant progress in getting the voice of UK nationals in Spain heard and increasing awareness of the insecurity facing hundreds of thousands of families due to the EU referendum. A key point that came out of our meeting was the importance of maintaining our European citizenship, not just having resident permits. Residence is insufficient unless accompanied by full EU rights.
   
   Our treasurer updated us on the registration figures and our data protection policy. We now have 350 associates, double that of early January and we aim to have over a thousand by Easter. Various members of the committee then informed us about our contacts with other groups around Spain like Bremain (Valencia), Brexpats (Malaga) and ECREU. We have also established close links with the group ‘Españoles en el Reino Unido’. Journalist and writer Giles Tremlett is our representative in a new umbrella group of UK citizens in Europe which presented an Alternative Round Paper two weeks ago and which is coordinating lobbying efforts both in Westminster and Brussels.
    Three members of the committee reported on their recent meeting with Simon Manley, HM Ambassador to Spain. They presented him with a document about the concerns of UK nationals which will be passed on to the Department for Leaving the European Union. They also suggested a hotline for Britons to ring the embassy with their concerns. We will continue to use all official channels available to get our voice heard. On Tuesday 21 February, six members of EuroCitizens will participate in a focus group in Madrid with the Director of Consular Services.
   EuroCitizens is beginning to make an impact in the press. Two weeks ago there was an in-depth article about our group in Veinte Minutos (artículo). This week we will appear in Espejo Público in Antena 3. On 2 March a member of EuroCitizens will participate in a BBC programme in Malaga about the impact of Brexit. On Wednesday 22 March we will participate in a working lunch organised by el Movimiento Europeo to which high-profile journalists have been invited. 
   To finish our meeting we discussed the organisation of the round table on 8 March in the building of the European Parliament in Madrid. We have five participants: an MEP, a representative of ‘Españoles en el RU’, speakers on health, education and legal aspects. This will be our first big public event and will be a major opportunity to get across our demands. 

EUROCITIZENS FEBRUARY NEWSLETTER: FIGHTING TO GET OUR VOICE HEARD

From International Business Times

EuroCitizens is a group of UK nationals in the Madrid region who are fighting for our EU citizenship rights and those of Spanish residents in Britain. We started in September last year and have gained momentum since our first public event in November. 
 
  Last week (09/02/17), three representatives of EuroCitizens met Simon Manley, UK ambassador in Spain. We presented him with a report about the concerns of our members over the loss of their EU citizenship rights. We communicated to him the high levels of distress and anxiety about the future that the more than 300,000 UK nationals in Spain are facing. EuroCitizens also requested that, bearing in mind the closeness of the triggering of Article 50, the Embassy and consulate increase communication with and practical support for UK nationals in Spain. We will be putting a series of articles on our blog about the possible impact of Brexit on our lives.
   Next week, we will be holding our fifth monthly meeting in Madrid (18/02: 12H Bar La Funda-Mental, C/Argumosa, 12, metro: Lavapiés línea 3, Atocha, línea 3). There will be reports from the five working groups: communication/social media, media/events, networking, support. Even if you cannot come to the meeting, if you would like to volunteer, get in touch with us. Even if you just have an hour or two a week, it can be useful. Everything helps.
   One of the problems in getting our voice heard in Westminster and Brussels is the number of different groups of UK nationals around Europe. To overcome this a platform called UK citizens in Europe has been set up. Two weeks ago, EuroCitizens and a dozen other groups sent an Alternative White Paper in the context of the parliamentary debates about activating Clause 50. We asked for full EU citizenship rights to be maintained and expressed the concerns of UK expats. This week, the umbrella group worked together again to request a meeting with David Davis, secretary of state for exiting the EU.
   On 22 February, three members of EuroCitizens will be taking part in a working lunch organised by el Movimiento Europeo about the impact of Brexit on citizenship rights. Then on 8 March we will be organising a round table in the building of the European Parliament in Madrid. We will have high profile speakers like Ignacio Sánchez Amor, spokesman on the Brexit committee of the Congreso de los Diputados. We will analyse the impact of the UK’s departure from the EU on these areas: work and living, education, health. 
   If you want to register with us and receive information, please go to  http://eepurl.com/dxGWwb

Alternative White Paper: http://www.ecreu.com/pdfs/alternative-white-paper-presented-by-UK-%20citizens-in-europe.pdf 

THE AMBASSADOR'S MESSAGE TO UK CITIZENS IN SPAIN

On Thursday 9 February, three representatives of EuroCitizens met with Simon Manley, UK ambassador in Spain. Next week, we will provide a full summary of the meeting in which we presented a detailed report about the concerns of our members and many other UK nationals in Spain. We highlighted the extreme anxiety and distress currently being experienced by the over 300,000 British and Northern Irish citizens in this country. Our futures have been put in jeopardy by the threatened removal of our EU citizenship rights. Below is a short message from Simon Manley, urging UK nationals to get their paperwork in order, report any problems and work with groups like EuroCitizens (Madrid), Bremain (Valencia) and Brexpats. 

 

UK NATIONALS AROUND THE EU REQUEST URGENT MEETING WITH DAVID DAVIS

Today, 09/02, EuroCitizens has coordinated with groups of UK nationals around Europe to request a meeting with David Davis, Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union. This platform of associations last week drew up an Alternative White Paper specifying the concerns of UK citizens in Europe and asking for recognition of all existing European citizenship rights. Now we are requesting involvement in future consultations with the department for leaving the EU. While Brexit moves inexorably closer we, along with hundreds of thousands of other UK nationals, feel that our voice is not being heard in Westminster. 

Email to stakeholders@dexeu.gov.uk

We are writing on behalf of Eurocitizens, a group of nearly two hundred UK citizens residing in and around Madrid. Today, three of our members are meeting HM Ambassador in Madrid, Simon Manley, and will present him with a report reflecting the concerns of our members about the implications of Brexit for our futures. 

We were amongst the groups who gave evidence to the Parliamentary Committee on Brexit on January 18. We also formed part of a platform of over a dozen associations of UK nationals in Europe which last week drew up an Alternative White Paper (attached). We believe that this is now the largest grouping of expats working on this issue. All of the associations, which are based throughout Europe, agree that the one million citizens in residence in the EU prior to Brexit should keep all current rights - not just those concerning residence - and need an agreement on this as soon as possible, with a similar arrangement for EU citizens already resident in the UK.

We note that the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, David Davis, told the House of Commons last week that "we have engaged a range of stakeholders, including expatriate groups, to ensure we understand the priorities of UK nationals living in EU countries". We have not been approached. Indeed, some of our groups have found it difficult to communicate with the department. We wish to be included in future consultations and would like to take this opportunity to ask department ministers to talk to us when they visit our countries of residence. We also request an urgent meeting with the Secretary of State in order to explain to him our concerns in person.

18/02: MONTHLY MEETING OF EUROCITIZENS AS CLAUSE 50 GETS CLOSER

On Saturday 18 February (12H) Eurocitizens will hold its fifth monthly meeting. Due to the numbers of people who attended last time, we have found a larger and hopefully more comfortable venue (also in Lavapiés). We will have a lot to talk about as our activity is becoming frenetic, with many upcoming events. We will send a more detailed progress report before 18 February.
Please share this with other UK nationals in Spain or Spanish citizens in the UK. The next few weeks and months will be crucial in our fight to maintain all of our citizenship rights. 

To register with Eurocitizens, go to our FB page: https://www.facebook.com/EuroCitizens-1119482284794200/