Campaigners for the post-Brexit rights of British nationals and EU citizens have criticised Donald Tusk and said the deal about to be signed in Brussels leaves them with a bleak future.
In a strongly worded letter they accused Tusk, the European Council President, of making a misleading statement to European political leaders when he told them the deal about to be signed in Brussels meant EU citizens will be protected from the consequences of Brexit. Campaign groups the3million and British in Europe argue that the European council has not defended the rights of British citizens or those from the other 27 EU countries but instead have negotiated away some of their most fundamental rights.
The groups suggested that a litany of omissions in the withdrawal agreement on citizens’ rights makes for a “bleak, uncertain future”. They urged Tusk, who is meeting EU leaders this week to discuss the Brexit withdrawal agreement, not to sign off on what they see as tantamount to the whole scale withdrawal of citizens’ rights. The campaign groups’ commentary was made in response to a letter Tusk wrote to members of the European council on Tuesday claiming he had achieved success when it came to citizens’ rights. The letter comes as more than a dozen British MEPs have written to the Brexit secretary, David Davis, questioning the government’s commitment to UK citizens in Europe.
The citizens’ groups have also become increasingly frustrated and angry by repeated claims by politicians on both sides of the Channel that their rights have been guaranteed post-Brexit. Britons in Europe are deeply concerned that they will be “landlocked” after Brexit, unable to travel to another EU country for business or pleasure because their freedom of movement rights will be wiped out. They are the only group that will be affected in this way as EU citizens in the UK continue to have free movement by virtue of their EU nationality. Further, Britons’ professional qualifications will not be recognised anywhere outside the country of their residence and they will be unable to offer their services in another EU country or to people in another country.
EU citizens in the UK also have concerns, namely that the Home Office cannot be trusted to administrate the new “settled status” given its historical error rate and mistaken threats to deport EU citizens, that the proposed system of arbitration is ineffectual and needs to be reviewed urgently by negotiators, and the fact that barriers to legal aid or access to the data the Home Office holds on them will make it difficult or impossible to defend their rights.
