About a quarter of European Union citizens living in the United Kingdom do not feel they are treated like people with British passports. This came from the agency’s first survey published on Thursday, which was prepared specifically to protect the rights of European Union citizens.
The survey Of the 3,000 EU and EFTA citizens living in the country by the Independent Monitoring Authority for Civil Rights Agreements (The Independent Monitoring Authority for Citizens’ Rights Agreements, IMA) is also a general lack of confidence in the UK authorities and institutions.
Thirty percent of respondents from European Union countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway said they did not trust that their civil rights would be respected by public authorities. Meanwhile, 50% of them were not aware of their civil rights. Ten percent are considering leaving the UK after June 30, when it is called the grace period for applications Settlement of the situation finish.
31 percent of those surveyed cited a lack of confidence in the government, while 11 percent cited direct effects and negative experiences regarding the Brexit process.
It is clear that there are issues of trust among the citizens of the European Union […] There is a real need for public bodies of all kinds to take steps to build that trust through their actions. “They also need to recognize the role they play in advancing civil rights in law, policy and practice,” said Catherine Chamberlain, IMA’s Executive Director. “We will continue to work with public institutions and question them to make sure they really understand these rights.”
Around five million people from European Union countries have applied to reside in the United Kingdom under the Status Settlement Program. Von diesen wurde 97 Prozent entweder der gewünschte Status angeboten, der ein unbefristetes Aufenthaltsrecht im Vereinigten Königreich „Pre-Settla Status“, der eine zunächst fünfjährts Wehrn der Zubentis mitu Apply for.
Free movement between the United Kingdom and the European Union ended on December 31, when the post-Brexit transition period ended and was replaced by the Trade and Cooperation Agreement.
People from EU countries residing in the UK now have until 30 June to officially secure their residency status on the islands.
However, the responsible Home Office is currently struggling with a backlog processing of more than 320,000 requests, raising further concerns in the IMA and civil society groups. Immigration Minister Kevin Foster promised: “Every person who applied for the settlement program in the European Union by 30 June, but did not receive a decision by that time, will guarantee his rights until his request is decided.”
The International Monetary Authority announced on Monday that it is still in “dialogue” with the Ministry of the Interior and “will verify whether we have legitimate reasons to start an investigation into this case.”
Previously, there was also confusion about whether EU citizens with pre-settled status enjoyed the same rights to social benefits in the UK as those with settled status or UK citizens. This included, for example, benefits like housing benefit. However, a ruling by the UK Court of Appeals in December affirmed that persons previously settled should be treated on an equal footing with other applicants.
[Bearbeitet von Josie Le Blond und Tim Steins]
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