Sadiq Khan will travel to Brussels to pitch the continued free movement of British citizens
Calling it an “associate citizenship”, the mayor of London hopes to convince EU negotiators to permit the continued free movement of Britons in Europe for those who wish to retain the privilege. With this would also come the associated rights of continued freedom of movement and residence, reciprocal rights in healthcare, welfare and workplace conditions and possibly the right to vote in European parliamentary elections.
The idea was first suggested in 2016 by the former prime minister of Belgium Guy Verhofstadt, who at the time was the European parliament’s Brexit coordinator. Such an initiative would be unlawful under current EU legislation and would necessitate the rewriting of treaties among each of the 27 member states. The unpopularity of reciprocal treatment of EU citizens in the UK would also limit the likelihood of such a proposal succeeding.
Khan, who will also meet the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, and the European parliament’s president, David Sassoli during his visit, hopes the issue of associate citizenship will form the centre of all talks concerning the parties’ future relationship.
