Responding to the Prime Minister outlining further details on EU
citizens living in the UK and UK nationals living in the EU,
, Director General of
the Institute of Directors, said:
“Employers will welcome the constructive clarity of intent
offered today and businesses look forward to the UK and EU
finally getting down to concrete discussions. Four in ten IoD
members employ EU nationals to fill skills shortages and they are
looking for certainty on the future of the workforce. Today’s
statement still leaves some substantial questions unanswered, but
will be regarded as a positive start to a complicated and
difficult negotiation.
“An aim is obviously not the same thing as a guarantee. Even
today, many of the important details are absent, including
information on the registration process for EU citizens and when
the cut-off date will be. More fundamentally, employers still
don’t know what will happen to their EU staff if no deal is
reached, questions remain as regards whether or what salary
thresholds will apply for workers and their families wanting to
remain in the UK. Many EU citizens work part of the year in the
UK and part overseas, so will not easily be able to prove their
right to remain due to interrupted periods of residence.
“The offer of a two year grace period after we leave for these
workers to acquire their right to settled status is welcome, but
two years may not be enough and five years would be better. The
obligation on individuals who have previously received permanent
residency to re-apply must be made as bureaucracy-free as
possible, for employers and the individuals concerned alike. It
will be essential for EU citizens to start preparing their
applications soon, and we’d urge Government to lay out further
detail of the process sooner rather than later so employers can
help their workers navigate the process.
“The future status of EU citizens currently in the UK and British
citizens in the EU should be the easiest – and least partisan –
topic of the Brexit negotiations. It is also the EU’s first
priority so failing to reach an early agreement will block UK
negotiators from progressing to other topics. We would expect the
Government to try and begin tackling some of this detail and
guidance in consultation with employers as part of the
forthcoming Immigration Bill. The clock is ticking and businesses
are keen for negotiations to get on to the more complicated
issues for our economy like trade and customs arrangements and a
deal on future migration between the UK and EU.”
