Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of compatibility of the proposed settled status scheme for EU nationals with Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

The EU Settlement Scheme is based on the draft Withdrawal Agreement with the EU, published on 14 November 2018. As the Withdrawal Agreement is based on residence rights stemming from existing EU law, it is compliant with the UK’s obligations as set out in the European Convention on Human Rights, which applies in all EU Member States and which includes the right to family life.

Frontier workers who are protected by Article 24 of the draft Withdrawal Agreement and who wish to continue to frontier work in the UK may apply to the EU Settlement Scheme should they wish for example, if they have been or expect to be resident in the UK for sufficient periods to be eligible for the scheme. Alternatively, they may be subject to a requirement to obtain a document to evidence their right to enter the UK and work as a frontier worker in line with Article 26 of the draft Withdrawal Agreement. Further details on this will be provided in due course.