This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

The rights of British nationals settled in EU countries must be protected in the event of a no-deal Brexit, a parliamentary report has said.



MPs on the Brexit select committee have called on EU leaders to make a public commitment to the estimated one million Britons in Europe who fear they are the forgotten victims of Brexit, standing to lose their rights to live and work in Spain, France, Germany and other member states if the UK crashes out of the bloc.

“Whatever happens with the negotiations, we urge all governments to make it clear to all EU citizens who have made somewhere else their home, that they can stay,” said Hilary Benn, a Labour MP and chair of the parliamentary committee.

The committee said in a report published on Monday that the deal for Britons living in Europe and EU citizens living in the UK who are directly affected by Brexit was “far from done”.

Many of the rights are guaranteed under the current draft withdrawal agreement, but the committee said that Britons in Europe, as they currently stand, will be worse off after Brexit.

They are still campaigning for post-Brexit rights including free movement to allow them to travel between countries freely for business and leisure. They also need agreement on mutual recognition of professional qualifications.

Britons living in EU tell MPs they are forgotten victims of Brexit Read more

The Brexit committee noted that the home secretary, Sajid Javid, had given a public commitment to EU citizens in the UK, saying they could “stay no matter what happens” in negotiations.

The committee said: “We … call on member states to make similar public commitments to assure all UK citizens living in their territory that their rights will also be safeguarded in such circumstances.”

The committee heard last month from British people living on the continent that they felt they were the forgotten victims of Brexit and were being used as hostages by both sides in negotiations.



The Brexit committee also raised concerns about EU citizens in the UK.

It said EU citizens granted “settled status” to stay in the UK after Brexit should be given physical residency cards rather than a digital ID number to prove their rights and not be forced to rely on online checks.

Brexit: Raab and Barnier meet as EU steps up no-deal warnings Read more

Nicolas Hatton, the founder of the3million campaign group for EU citizens, said he welcomed the report and its recommendations for a physical settled status document, which he said would help “reduce the risk of discrimination in the workplace, with public services or with private landlords”.

Both the EU and the UK are stepping up contingency planning for a no-deal outcome to the Brexit negotiations, and the European commission said last week that if the UK crashes out “there would be no specific arrangement in place for EU citizens in the United Kingdom, or for UK citizens in the European Union”.