This story [1] was originally published on OpenDemocracy.net/en/.
License: Creative Commons 4.0 - Attributions/No Derivities/
international.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Brexit: Let’s reform the immigration system, not regret lost privileges
By: []
Date: None
Five years to the day that the UK voted to leave the EU, European nationals find themselves at a crossroads. Should we fight to preserve our own exceptionalism – or campaign for a fairer and more humane immigration system for everyone?
In post-Brexit Britain, gone are the days when Germans, Italians or Spaniards could simply board a plane and start their new life in the UK. So much has changed since I first left Italy three years ago, carrying just one suitcase but many ambitions.
As I build my adult life in my new home, Scotland, I often think about the generations of EU nationals who’d like to move to the UK in future. They will be subjected to the merciless gatekeeping of a points-based system, which discriminates in favour of those who can already afford a well-off lifestyle.
And they also face suspicion and hostility, including from the UK Border Force.
We win on government secrecy! We’ve just won a three-year transparency battle against Michael Gove’s department. Can you help us keep fighting government secrecy? Donate now
Last month Politico and The Guardian reported that scores of European nationals had been detained in immigration removal centres, including the notorious Yarls Wood centre, for up to seven days. EU nationals can still travel visa-free for 90 days – and those who settled here before 31 December 2020, like me, can apply for pre-settled status and enjoy the same rights to work, live and access healthcare as British citizens for five years. But those suspected of newly entering the UK to seek work must now have a work visa.
[1] Url:
https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/opendemocracyuk/brexit-lets-reform-the-immigration-system-not-regret-lost-privileges/
