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Juncker being sued by British expat group over no negotiation order
| Published: | 10 Oct at 6 PM |
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The European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker is being sued in the European Court of Justice over his banning of any pre-Article 50 negotiations.
A legal challenge has been mounted by the Fair Deal for Expats group on the basis that Junckers’ so-called ‘presidential order’ has no basis in EU law and must be considered an ‘unlawful gagging order’. The group is calling for the immediate annulment of the order, thus allowing the commencement of EU/UK pre-Brexit talks focusing on Brexit’s potential effects on British expats.
The expat group’s decision to bring the issue to court was spurred by Theresa May’s recent statement that preparatory discussions with EU governments should take place before she activates Article 50 next March. Other European leaders as well as Junckers have warned an ‘a la carte’ deal with the UK would spur other EU member states to attempt to change their own positions within the union.
Lawyers for Fair deal for Expats are stating unequivocally that the ‘presidential order’ has no basis in European Commission law. Junckers’ statement that he had forbidden all EU member states to hold any discussions with the UK government until Article 50 was invoked only four days after the referendum result was announced.
According to data held by the United Nations, over a million UK expats are presently living in other EU member states. Spain is the most popular with over 300,000 Brits in residence, and Ireland is home to a quarter of a million, whilst France hosts 185,000 UK citizens. The right to remain and the right to heathcare are the most important issues.
Fair Deal for Expats member Wynne Edwards told the media Junckers’ order amounted to discrimination as it attempted to influence UK citizens’ legitimate discussion of the effects of Brexit. For example, he said, should Germans speak about Brexit’s effects on their country, they would be within the law to do so. Edwards added all most expats want is to be allowed to find out what is negotiable and what is not, thus giving them the opportunity to plan their post-Brexit lives.
A legal challenge has been mounted by the Fair Deal for Expats group on the basis that Junckers’ so-called ‘presidential order’ has no basis in EU law and must be considered an ‘unlawful gagging order’. The group is calling for the immediate annulment of the order, thus allowing the commencement of EU/UK pre-Brexit talks focusing on Brexit’s potential effects on British expats.
The expat group’s decision to bring the issue to court was spurred by Theresa May’s recent statement that preparatory discussions with EU governments should take place before she activates Article 50 next March. Other European leaders as well as Junckers have warned an ‘a la carte’ deal with the UK would spur other EU member states to attempt to change their own positions within the union.
Lawyers for Fair deal for Expats are stating unequivocally that the ‘presidential order’ has no basis in European Commission law. Junckers’ statement that he had forbidden all EU member states to hold any discussions with the UK government until Article 50 was invoked only four days after the referendum result was announced.
According to data held by the United Nations, over a million UK expats are presently living in other EU member states. Spain is the most popular with over 300,000 Brits in residence, and Ireland is home to a quarter of a million, whilst France hosts 185,000 UK citizens. The right to remain and the right to heathcare are the most important issues.
Fair Deal for Expats member Wynne Edwards told the media Junckers’ order amounted to discrimination as it attempted to influence UK citizens’ legitimate discussion of the effects of Brexit. For example, he said, should Germans speak about Brexit’s effects on their country, they would be within the law to do so. Edwards added all most expats want is to be allowed to find out what is negotiable and what is not, thus giving them the opportunity to plan their post-Brexit lives.
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