EU expats living locally - have your say

[muppet19]

Looking for French, Italian, Spanish, Polish (or other EU country) born locals who might share any practical issues/difficulties caused by Brexit - for newspaper article. Maybe problems running local business, work rights, residency. Please PM me - thanks. NB it?s not political.

[Spartacus]

Typical journalist with a contradictory request

"It's not political" and "share any practical issues/difficulties caused by Brexit"

If it was truly non political you should be asking for positives and negatives to produce a balanced article not a one sided biased article.

[Lowlander]

And what might the benefits of Brexit be for an EU born citizen resident in London? Genuinely interested.

[Spartacus]

If Liz Rowlinson writes an unbiased article then your question might be answered is my guess.

[JohnL]

Spartacus Wrote:

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> Typical journalist with a contradictory request

> "It's not political" and "share any practical

> issues/difficulties caused by Brexit"

>

> If it was truly non political you should be asking

> for positives and negatives to produce a balanced

> article not a one sided biased article.

Positives - none

Done :)

[JohnL]

To be serious a lot of EU workers I knew (bar staff etc.) have gone back to EU so won't be able to answer your question (the manager of the pub opposite my work told me her entire workforce left around xmas 2019).

[Spartacus]

Interesting view johnl, the "positives none"

Like the pub work force, if there's no positive reason to stay they wouldn't be here, so if ex pats are staying then there has to be some reason or positives, hence why I think that Liz should be writing an unbiased article and not a negative hearsay article.

A lot of the ex pats I know have a lot of positive reasons to stay along with a number of frustrations.

[JohnL]

I was being flippant, some have obviously stayed and I met one - he just said he's here for good - I got the feeling going back was worse.

I suppose you have to look at why people came to UK in the first place - opportunities, liberal government, freedom.

[Hamletter]

The numbers returning to the EU will be influenced greatly by their country of origin and particularly the comparison of wages between the UK and their country.

I would expect a high percentage of expats from Poland will remain here. Checkout this comparison

https://countryeconomy.com/countries/compare/poland/uk?sc=XEAB

I would guess the same would apply to Romanians, Portuguese, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia, Bulgaria etc

[zerkalo]

Some other EU citizens, like myself, who were able to afford it and willing to go through the stressful Home Office process, have chosen to apply for UK citizenship. Not because that's a proof of how great living in the UK is, as Michael Gove would probabaly like to argue, but because many have build lives and families here and want to safeguard their rights and prevent another Windrush-type situation from ever happening to them.

[mynamehere]

Does anyone think finding skilled engineers: plumbers building electricians etc is harder after BREXIT?

[alex_b]

mynamehere Wrote:

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> Does anyone think finding skilled engineers:

> plumbers building electricians etc is harder after

> BREXIT?

All of those are important, skilled trades, but none of those are engineers.

[diable rouge]

Lots of different type of engineers...structural, civil, mechanical, electrical, heating...

[JohnL]

Engineer, technician, administrator, specialist I've seen these used for very similar jobs/roles.

[alex_b]

diable rouge Wrote:

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> Lots of different type of engineers...structural,

> civil, mechanical, electrical, heating...

Absolutely all valid engineering disciplines, but the difference between a civil engineer and a builder, a heating engineer and a plumber, and an electrical engineer and an electrician are vast. The misuse of engineer in the UK drives me mad.

[Seabag]

A friend ?moved back? to Hungary, she?s an accountant and trading in international trade.

She has settled status after 8 years here, but due to family events, ageing grandparents, she returned to her country of origin. Plus the ever growing feeling of hostility since the Brexit vote has made informed the move.

Now she finds herself in a different limbo, where there?s not a status for her back in Hungary to access health services etc, a system where she?s getting passed around the state departments with basically the same outcome. We can?t help you.

So to access medical services she?s having to plan to fly back here. She feels lost between two cultures and systems, wondering if going ?home? is actually possible/better or the same.

Not really the best Brexit experience would you say?

And I imagine this happening over and over, so staying as is, working in pubs seems like an option without options. And those who go are advising those thinking of leaving to be cautious.

[Seabag]

Training not trading ☝️