Claim: “It’s unfair that people coming from European countries can access free NHS care without paying in while others make significant contributions.”

Michael Gove, Mail on Sunday, Nov 17

InFact: European citizens* make a bigger contribution to our public finances than both non-EU citizens and Brits. This is because they pay more taxes, and use the NHS and other public services less.

Non-EU migrants take out £840 more than the average Brit each year, according to analysis done for the government’s own Migration Advisory Committee. While some pay a surcharge of £400 a year to get similar access to the NHS as residents, this doesn’t close the gap.

Meanwhile, European citizens make a net contribution of £2,300 more than the average UK resident. Their total net contribution was £4.7 billion in 2016/2017. What’s unfair about that – unless Gove means it’s European citizens who are getting a raw deal?

It’s true that European citizens can also use the NHS when they are not working. But they must then hold health insurance or a valid European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) – which means the NHS shouldn’t be picking up the tab. What’s unfair about that?

What’s more, European citizens get special access to the NHS as part of a deal that gives Brits the automatic right to use other EU countries’ health systems. 145,000 of our pensioners get free healthcare in other EU countries, with the NHS picking up the tab. Meanwhile, 27 million Brits have EHIC cards giving them free healthcare when they travel to other EU countries.

What’s unfair about that? It’s actually one of the benefits of being in the EU.

* Citizens of the EU plus Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Switzerland

The £4.7 billion figure on total net contribution by European citizens was added on December 1

