Labour Leaders of London Boroughs including Cllr Stephen Alambritis from Merton have joined forces to urge the Prime Minister to immediately guarantee the rights of people originally from other countries in the European Union living in Merton and in the rest of the UK.
Almost eighteen months since the UK voted to leave the European Union, the Government is yet to guarantee that people from other countries in the European Union will be able to remain in the UK after Brexit. This has serious implications for London, which is home to around 1.2 million people originally from the European Union.
On Monday, a letter was sent to the former Merton councillor and now Prime Minister, Mrs May, urging her to guarantee the full rights of people originally from other countries in the European Union currently living in the UK. The letter was signed by all 21 Labour Leaders of London Boroughs.
Cllr Stephen Alambritis Leader of Merton Council, says: “It is morally wrong and economically damaging that the Government is continuing to treat our friends, family and neighbours as a bargaining chip in the Brexit negotiations. Despite their warm words, the Government has still not given the basic guarantee that people from other countries in the European Union will be able to remain in the UK after Brexit.
“Ever since the Brexit vote, Labour councillors across London have been calling on the Government to do the right thing. We have a duty as councillors to stand up for local people, wherever in the world they are from. We will not rest until the Government has guaranteed that people from other countries in the European Union can continue to live and work in the UK.”
“Our public sector, councils and communities depend on people from countries in the European Union. They make a huge economic, social and cultural contribution to London.
“London is a wonderfully diverse city that is home to people from across the world, including 1.2 million people from countries in the European Union. We would be poorer in every sense of the word if they left because the Government has not guaranteed their full rights.”
The Leaders’ letter calls on the Prime Minister to immediately guarantee the full rights of all EU Citizens living in the UK and that their rights will not be affected in the event of no Brexit deal. The demands add weight to the Labour Party’s same repeated calls to the Government.
EU workers represent 13 per cent of London’s workforce and made a net contribution of £20bn to public finances between 2000 and 2011. They also represent 10 per cent of doctors and 7 per cent of nurses in London’s NHS. Their potential departure from the UK would have serious economic and health repercussions on the capital.
There are clear signs that the Government’s failure to guarantee the rights of people from other countries in the European Union is having consequences. Research from the Nursing and Midwifery Council this month shows that the number of nurses and midwives from Europe leaving the register has increased by 67 per cent since last year. Data from the ONS continues to show a sharp fall in net migration, fuelled by a fall in the number of EU workers moving to the UK and a rise in EU workers leaving the UK.