EU Threatens to Block Brexit Talks Over Plans for Police Checks on Citizens Who Hope to Remain in Britain

World » EU | July 26, 2017, Wednesday // 14:43
Bulgaria: EU Threatens to Block Brexit Talks Over Plans for Police Checks on Citizens Who Hope to Remain in Britain pixabay.com

The EU is vowing to block Brexit talks unless Theresa May drops plans for criminal checks on European citizens hoping to stay in Britain, reported Daily Mail.

Senior MEPs attacked the requirement as a mass ‘invasion of privacy’ and called for a list of demands to be met by the UK.
British ministers have insisted that the 3.2million people hoping to claim ‘settled status’ after the split with Brussels must undergo the checks in an attempt to root out criminals.

But the powerful cohort of EU politicians, who will wield a veto over the final Brexit agreement, yesterday said talks cannot proceed unless the safeguard is ‘off the table’.

The move will rankle with UK negotiators who are resisting the EU’s attempts to shape Britain’s immigration policy even after it leaves the bloc. 

Brexit Secretary David Davis has said the checks do not affect civil liberties and are a ‘reasonable’ method to help kick out those deemed a serious threat to society.

Guy Verhofstadt, the European Parliament’s Brexit coordinator, yesterday said he would not accept criminal checks.
He added: ‘We seek to avoid an administrative burden for citizens and want proposals which are intrusive to people’s privacy off the table, e.g. proposed systematic criminal checks.’

It came after talks between Brussels and the UK ended in a stalemate last week and British officials said that there were significant gaps in the EU’s approach.

While French former EU commissioner Michel Barnier is leading negotiations for the bloc, insiders increasingly fear that Mr Verhofstadt and his allies could hold up talks.

 

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Tags: Michel Barnier, UK, theresa may, Brexit, EU, David Davis

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