Prime Minister’s plan to use EU workers as bargaining chips is ‘shameful’ and bad for working people, says TUC

Commenting on the white paper published today on the rights of EU citizens currently living in the UK after Brexit, TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said:

“The Prime Minister is using people as bargaining chips. It’s a shameful way to treat people who are making a valuable contribution to Britain, not least in the NHS. And it will worry Britons living in EU countries that it will provoke a bad deal for their future rights.

“By leaving it to negotiations, the Prime Minister is prolonging the anxiety and uncertainty people are suffering. And she is damaging the goodwill needed to secure a successful Brexit deal. It’s yet more evidence of how her chaotic Brexit strategy is failing to prioritise working people and good jobs.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

- TUC concerns about the government’s white paper include:

• The cut-off date by which EU citizens would need to arrive to gain settled status may be a date in the past (29 March 2017), which throws into doubt the status and rights of EU citizens that have arrived since this date and those that will arrive in the future. Bad employers may use this insecurity to exploit workers.
• There is no detail provided about the additional resources that will be needed to process the millions of claims EU citizens will be making for settled status. The Home Office is already struggling with backlogs from non-EU citizens – there needs to be an immediate increase in funding and staffing to ensure applications for settled status can be processed effectively.
• Income records may be used as a source of evidence to prove continuous residency in the UK. This could discriminate against workers whose employers do not provide payslips, or only pay cash in hand.