EU families & Eurochildren in Brexiting Britain

Thousands of children of EU parents at risk of falling through the cracks of Brexit, University of Birmingham research reveals

Thousands EU citizens and their family members living in the UK under EU law are at risk of ‘falling through the cracks’, with their rights of future residence in question after Brexit, Eurochildren researchers say. In two Eurochildren Research Briefs published today on the impact of the UK-EU agreement on residence and citizenship rights for…

Amber Rudd, the Windrush scandal and the reluctant Remainer

The Windrush scandal is undoubtedly the scene of a crime, multiple crimes. But which scene and what crime now needs maximum public exposure? Source: Amber Rudd, the Windrush scandal and the reluctant Remainer | openDemocracy There is something bittersweet and something definitely fishy in Amber Rudd’s resignation. Many have celebrated it as a victory against Theresa May’s ‘hostile…

Windrush generation is not alone – children of EU citizens could be next

by Nando Sigona, University of Birmingham Theresa May, the UK prime minister, and Amber Rudd, home secretary, have both apologised for the distress caused by the treatment of the so-called “Windrush generation”, in the face of mounting pressure from MPsand the wider public. Having been accused by the Home Office of residing in the UK without authorisation, these Commonwealth-born,…

From mobile citizens to migrants: event at the British Library

In the aftermath of the United Kingdom’s referendum on their continued membership of the European Union and the ongoing negotiations into the issue of citizens’ rights, EU27 nationals living in the UK and UK citizens living in the EU27, stand to see their legal status shift from that of mobile citizens to migrants. This has…

Being patriotic, European and cosmopolitan

by Michal Siewniak* This week my eldest daughter, Maria, had a non – uniform day. All children had an opportunity to express themselves. They all did that in many different ways. Our Maria decided to wear Polish top and Croatian scarf. Her mum comes from the Croatia whereas her dad is Polish. She was really…

Poem on belonging: A Traveller’s Lodge

A Traveller’s Lodge By Natalie Dunn Seized by twofold darkness: Two stools, one fallen, an empty room. The place I live in with a lost girl from Christchurch and a bewildered beauty from Boston who is making some Chinese tea. The French lady forfeited her accent somewhere, she is not looking. The farmer from…

You can’t have an integrated society in a hostile environment: Diary of an EU citizen in the UK (34)

The UK Government’s strategy is not for an integrated society, focusing on what government and society could and should do, but for integrated ‘communities’, code word for everyone else. After a bit of fanfare, a couple of catchy soundbites and a few top-line proposals leaked a day or two before the release, the Department of…

Is David Attenborough the solution to mass migration? Diary of an EU citizen in the UK (32)

Facts seem to have become a disposable commodity these days. We are going through a phase of evidence-free policy making and post-truth politics, known in Trump’s America as fake-newsism. “I will call an expert!” has replaced the bogeyman as parents’ favourite to frighten children into good behaviour. Tory ministers and MPs dismiss any evidence (from…