Citizens’ Rights (European Affairs Committee Report)

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Monday 11th September 2023 Grand Committee

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

My Lords, I thank everyone who has contributed to the debate. I particularly thank the committee and its chair for their excellent report and their ongoing work to scrutinise the Government’s efforts with regard to citizens’ rights. It is vital. I think a noble Lord said that this is not an abstract issue; it is about real people. I must declare an interest: my husband is a Spanish national. Immediately after Brexit, the one thing we both feared was that our rights to be citizens of two European countries and have the benefits of that, with families and homes in both countries, and our ability to live as EU citizens would be taken away.

I will not be tempted by the questions from the noble Lord, Lord Balfe. Brexit has happened; it is there. What we need to do is ensure that the rights that the Government promised after Brexit are properly maintained and implemented. I recall that, when we had those early debates, we estimated the number of people who might be affected. I certainly welcomed all the efforts of the3million. I do not think that any of us really thought that we would be talking about 7 million. It shows the huge personal impact that this can have.

However, I acknowledge—as does the committee—that the scheme launched has been relatively successful. The approach the Government say that they have had in terms of the response to the original committee report, a flexible and pragmatic approach, certainly helps us to persuade the EU to reciprocate and work in a collaborative way. Of course, as we have heard during the debate, changes that may impact that flexible approach will undoubtedly have a damaging effect on our citizens in the EU. I hope the Minister can give some very clear assurances on that, particularly in relation to the Home Secretary’s assurances that we will continue to make representations, as the noble Baroness, Lady Anelay, mentioned. It is vital.

I will repeat some of the ongoing issues, particularly, as the noble Baroness, Lady Anelay, said, on the resources UK citizens can rely on in dealing with citizens’ rights issues within the EU. These have obviously diminished, and the UK Nationals Support Fund has closed. We got vague terms in the response from the Government on embassy support, which is really insufficient. People need to know where they can go and what support they can expect. Certainly, that relies on consulates.

The other issue I want to raise is in relation to the Government disagreeing with the committee on the lack of physical documentation. Certainly, the3million has highlighted this, as have others. There are concerns that the digital-only nature of “view and prove” has caused issues for older people, those in Roma and Traveller communities and those with disabilities. I know this from experience; I helped my husband apply for settled status and I made a mistake. It took six months to put it right because you cannot easily pick up a phone and say “I didn’t mean to press that button. I meant to press another button”. It got resolved in the end, and it has certainly not been a problem since, but I want to add to the point.

The noble Lord, Lord Hannay, and other noble Lords raised that it is not simply about a technical issue. People who work and live in this country—people like my husband, who has lived in this country for 28 years, has paid tax and national insurance and shares a home with me—want to feel recognised as someone legitimately living in this country. However, my husband has to rely on some vague computer system. Every time we go through passport control, he does not feel that that has been recognised. That is the important point to bear in mind; it is about more than just simply a technological process. This is about rights people feel they are entitled to, and they feel vulnerable. We need to address that properly. The committee’s work has been brilliant in focusing on those issues.

My noble friend raised the question of the backlog. All noble Lords have raised the issue of people in limbo who have applications in, but the delay in dealing with them means that they will encounter problems in terms of the ETA and advanced passenger transport information which are coming in. These are practical issues that will hugely impact people’s lives. EU citizens are not people who stay in this country permanently; they need to visit their families, and they have bereavements and other issues where they need to respond. We need to hear a bit of empathy and understanding from the Government about what we are talking about here.

In conclusion, I seek reassurance from the Government that they are fully prepared, or preparing, for the influx of settled status applications over the coming years, ensuring that we have clear, simple systems in place that take into account the needs of those people needing most help to apply. It is that empathy that I would like to hear from the Minister. Also, there is the whole question of automatic conversion. We hear that it will take place in 2024—why? What is the delay? Will that cause even greater uncertainty for people? Can we be clear about who will be covered and who are digitally excluded or vulnerable? Will the digitally excluded or vulnerable be prioritised, and how will the Government make sure that those who may need to make applications know? I think these are fundamental questions that I hope the noble Lord will be able to answer this evening.