This is a particularly disturbing development.
I don’t know about you, but I know of several children with parents from the EU.
It seems that, due to a loophole in the law, they may end up being deported when they reach the age of 18, even though their parents have the right to stay in the UK.
Handy little trick, that, for a government that wants to cut the number of immigrant families on British soil; parents who fall foul of this loophole may feel bound to leave as well.
Of course, Brexit is a divisive issue. I wonder how many people who learn of this will tell their colleagues, neighbours, or even friends who happen to be from an EU country.
Internationally blended families involving EU citizens and British-born children are being warned that their children could face “serious problems” after Brexit if they do not already have documentation to stay in the UK.
Parents from the EU are being urged to get their children’s status documented as soon as possible if they want them to avoid hostile environment checks by the Home Office which could mean measures such as bank accounts being closed, driving licences cancelled and job offers being withdrawn.
The consequences for those that have not obtained British citizenship for children of two EU citizens living in Britain are “potentially severe”, according to the paper published by immigration law experts at the University of Birmingham.
Interestingly, the same thing is happening to children who came here from the Caribbean, 50+ years after the fact.
Surely it would be more severe if the children stayed in the U.K. when their parents went home, it’s a bit like asking if two foreigners come here on holiday and have a baby is the child a British citizen ?