Sky Views: It's time to put Brits abroad out of their misery

Sky Views: It's time to put Brits abroad out of their misery

Mark Stone, Europe correspondent

Brexit: such a turn-off word now.

Most people, anecdotally at least, are fed up with it all and just want the government to get on with it.

Of course there are some who, whether they be dedicated or deluded, are determined to reverse the decision.

By and large, though, remainers just want the plaster ripped off fast and leavers want the chance, finally, to realise life beyond Brexit.


But for one very large group of people, Brexit remains painful - psychologically, emotionally and in a practical sense too.

There are well over a million Brits who live across continental Europe and more than three million continental Europeans who have chosen to make the UK their home.

Today, two years into this Brexit process, they remain unsure about how their lives will change once the UK leaves the EU.

Image: Over 1m Brits live across continental Europe and more than 3m Europeans have chosen to make the UK their home

In the context of the Brexit negotiations their predicament is wrapped up into a phrase which hardly does it justice: "citizens' rights".

Both the EU and the British government promised that this most human aspect of the Brexit process would be their priority.

It was, they said, going to be an issue which would be nailed down and agreed upon fast.

In short, people were led to believe that nothing would change - they would enjoy precisely the same rights in the future as they do now.

Instead though, the post-Brexit status of more than four million people has become a bargaining chip.

From the perspective of the negotiating teams you can see why the most human aspect of Brexit is also a powerful negotiating tool.

But look at it from the perspective of those concerned.

First - some myths, busted. British expats, who could equally be called migrants (a loaded word with different connotations), are not all retirees living in the Costas.

Image: Only 20% of Britons abroad are people who have retired to the Costas or Provence

Only about 20% of the 1+ million Brits abroad are retired. They are enjoying the sun in the Costas or Provence or wherever. But that shouldn't mean their needs or concerns are irrelevant.

They need to know, post-Brexit, that the decision they made, in good faith, to move to another part of the EU will not be forced to change.

They need to know that their pensions are secure and that their healthcare is guaranteed.

Negotiators may insist that it'll all be fine for them, but the commonly trotted out politician's phrase "nothing is agreed until everything is agreed" is hardly reassuring.

Then there is the 80% of British expats/migrants who are not retired.

They live in countries right across the EU because that is where they work.

They need to know that they can continue to work in the country they have made their home.

The same is true for the three million "foreigners" (a loaded term in a Brexit context) who work in the UK: plumbers, lawyers, baristas, professors, teachers, nurses, doctors... pick a profession.

There is a crucial added dimension for Brits working in Europe. According to research by British In Europe, the lobby group representing them, at least half of the 80% of working Brits abroad rely on "freedom of movement".

Image: Many of the nurses in NHS hospitals come from the EU

What does that mean? It means that they live in one EU country but work, partially or wholly, in another. At the moment, that's fine.

It's particularly pertinent in the so-called Benelux countries - Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands - small nations where it's likely that someone may find work in a neighbouring state.

Post-Brexit, it's far from clear whether or not they will still be able to do this or whether they will need to get work permits for individual EU countries.

If they do, will they be granted? If not, what happens to their livelihood, their career? They just don't know. It's deeply unsettling for them.

The uncertainty also undermines the government's "global Britain" argument.

If the UK is to remain competitive and ensure its citizens are plugged into markets and industries around Europe, they need to be able to continue their work in those markets.

The British government has said that all EU citizens in the UK will need to apply for "settled status".

The British government has said that all EU citizens in the UK will need to apply for 'settled status'. Given that the negotiating teams have said that all arrangements will be reciprocal it's likely to mean that Brits abroad will need to do the same wherever they have made their home. From my experience of Belgian bureaucracy, this could be a very challenging process.

Given that the negotiating teams have said that all arrangements will be reciprocal, it's likely to mean that Brits abroad will need to do the same wherever they have made their home.

From my experience of Belgian bureaucracy, this could be a very challenging process.

An added complication is that many EU countries don't, at present, require people to register.

So how will people be able to prove they have lived in their chosen country for a period of time? Many uncertainties and complications remain.

If you are a parent or a grandparent you are probably familiar with the work of Axel Scheffler - he's the man who brought Julia Donaldson's books alive for millions of children: The Gruffalo, Room on the Broom, The Highway Rat, Stickman.

He won the illustration prize at the British Book Awards last week.

He is a German who made Britain his home 36 years ago. He's a bitter man now.

Receiving his prize, he said: "It's just 10 months until 'Freedom Day' - next March - and I - and my fellow EU citizens, many working in the UK book industry - are still living in uncertainty.

Image: Room on the Broom illustrator Axel Scheffler warns the UK that without friends, the dragons may 'come and get you'

"We have, so far, no guarantee that we can still live and work here in the future. In a worst-case scenario, I might not be allowed to stay here by the time my next book with Julia Donaldson is launched."

He continued: "There would have been no Gruffalo without the EU facilitating my study here. And, even if I had, somehow, studied in the UK, I would have had to leave after my studies ended in 1985.

"So there would never have been the successful Anglo-German joint venture Donaldson-Scheffler.

"It makes me sad, and I worry when I think of a post-Brexit future for the UK families, especially the children, who are growing up with our books.

"What went wrong? What did they miss, the parents and grandparents who were reading Room on the Broom with its message of the importance of solidarity, partnership, friendship and kindness?

"The book wasn't called 'No Room on the Broom'. Beware, Brexit Britain - if you have no friends in a 'hostile environment' - the dragons may come and get you," Mr Scheffler said.

So, rather than talking jargon about "citizens' rights" and "settled status", it's time both sides in this negotiation genuinely settled the status and the minds of millions whose entire future has been thrown into question.

Sky Views is a series of comment pieces by Sky News editors and correspondents, published every morning.

Previously on Sky Views: Adam Boulton - Reality royals risk us asking why they are special