Migrants’ fears over what happens to them now after Britain chose Brexit in the EU referendum
Boris Johnson tries to reassure people by saying 'we cannot turn our backs on Europe'
EU MIGRANTS are worried they face an uncertain future in Britain after last night’s historic referendum vote.
Ending the free movement of people from the European Union was a big promise of the Leave campaign and, now they are victorious, this will happen.
This has worried some migrants who have taken to social media to question whether they are going to get kicked out.
But people already here need not worry as the Leave campaign has said, even after the Brexit negotiations are complete, those who are already in the UK will be allowed to stay.
Vote Leave said: “There will be no change for EU citizens already lawfully resident in the UK.
“These EU citizens will automatically be granted indefinite leave to remain in the UK and will be treated no less favourably than they are at present.”
And without outlining the explicit terms of the proposed immigration system, in Boris Johnson’s victory speech this morning he said: “We cannot turn our backs on Europe.
“We are part of Europe, our children and our grandchildren will continue to have a wonderful future as Europeans, travelling to the continent, understanding the languages and the cultures that make up our common European civilisation, continuing to interact with the peoples of other countries in a way that is open and friendly and outward looking.”
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And former Treasury economist Jonathan Portes says it would not be possible for Britain to deport EU migrants – for practical reasons.
In a the director of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research writes: “Remember that given we have no population register, and that EU nationals are not require to have visas, we won’t actually know who is here on June 23rd.
“The only practical procedure would appear to be that suggested by Ukip's migration spokesman, Steven Woolf, that anyone who’d registered for a National Insurance number prior to the referendum would be guaranteed residence rights."
Mr Portes added: “But even this will not address the more complex cases, of which there will be many thousand.
“At the same time the government will need to try to address the understandable concerns of Britons abroad; of course it will have no direct control, but a generous offer to EU nationals here would help.”
During the campaign period Vote Leave said its plan was to introduce an Australian-style points immigration system.
This will mean people who want to come to the UK to work or study will be admitted on the basis of their skills without discrimination on the grounds of nationality.
The immigration system will not be introduced until the UK has left the EU and in his speech this morning Mr Johnson said: “In voting to leave the EU, it is vital to stress there is no need for haste, and as the prime minister has said, nothing will change in the short term except how to give effect to the will of the people and to extricate this country from the supranational system.”
Talks to get Britain to leave the EU are expected to take two years.