'The number of European Union nationals in the UK granted status under the EU Settlement Scheme passed the three million mark in February.' Photo: courtesy of the3million
Friends talk sanctuary and migration
Quakers gathered for online event including speakers from QCEA and the 3million campaign.
Quakers gathered online this month to hear a talk about Quaker work on sanctuary and migration. Andrew Lane, the director of Quaker Council for European Affairs (QCEA) in Brussels, spoke about the work Quakers do to engage European governments and institutions on questions of migration justice. The event, called ‘Sanctuary Europe: Quaker work on Human Rights and Migration’, also included Luke Piper, head of Policy for the 3million campaign, who spoke about the campaign for EU citizens in the UK to be allowed documentary proof of their rights after Brexit, instead of just an electronic number.
The campaign has welcomed new secondary legislation that means vulnerable citizens already lawfully living in the country may now be able to apply for settled status years after the 30 June 2021 deadline. However, Luke Piper said there were profound concerns about people who did not receive their settled or pre-settled status by 1 January because of Home Office delays. He said he was also concerned about the stipulation that those applying late should prove they had a ‘reasonable excuse’. ‘By limiting legal rights in this way [when EU citizens were exercising their legal right to be in UK], we worry about the implications on people’s ability to legally live in the UK and access healthcare and other vital services in the UK’, he said in The Guardian this month.
The number of European Union nationals in the UK granted status under the EU Settlement Scheme passed the three million mark in February. However, the 3million campaign expressed concern about the sharp rise in numbers of those deemed ineligible.
