EU threatens to block Brexit talks over plans for checks
The EU is vowing to block Brexit talks unless Theresa May drops plans for criminal checks on European citizens hoping to stay in Britain.
Senior MEPs attacked the requirement as a mass ‘invasion of privacy’ and called for a list of demands to be met by the UK.
British ministers have insisted that the 3.2million people hoping to claim ‘settled status’ after the split with Brussels must undergo the checks in an attempt to root out criminals.
But the powerful cohort of EU politicians, who will wield a veto over the final Brexit agreement, yesterday said talks cannot proceed unless the safeguard is ‘off the table’.
Guy Verhofstadt, the European Parliament’s Brexit coordinator, yesterday said he would not accept criminal checks
The move will rankle with UK negotiators who are resisting the EU’s attempts to shape Britain’s immigration policy even after it leaves the bloc.Â
Brexit Secretary David Davis has said the checks do not affect civil liberties and are a ‘reasonable’ method to help kick out those deemed a serious threat to society.
Guy Verhofstadt, the European Parliament’s Brexit coordinator, yesterday said he would not accept criminal checks.Â
He added: ‘We seek to avoid an administrative burden for citizens and want proposals which are intrusive to people’s privacy off the table, e.g. proposed systematic criminal checks.’
It came after talks between Brussels and the UK ended in a stalemate last week and British officials said that there were significant gaps in the EU’s approach.
While French former EU commissioner Michel Barnier is leading negotiations for the bloc, insiders increasingly fear that Mr Verhofstadt and his allies could hold up talks.Â
MEPs will be given several months to scrutinise the final deal and then vote on whether it should be passed in 2019.
After being updated on talks by Mr Barnier yesterday, former Belgian prime minister Mr Verhofstadt accused the UK of using citizens as ‘bargaining chips’ and issued a list of demands.
These included asking Britain to present an ‘initial framework’ for settling the controversial divorce bill â€" the money Brussels claims it is owed by the UK. This is despite British officials accusing the EU of failing to explain its demands.
Mr Verhofstadt said: ‘If we want negotiations to succeed within the limited time we have, progress on more detailed content will have to be made sooner rather than later.’ The influential MEP also said EU citizens remaining in the UK should be given a wide range of benefits, including the right to be joined by family members for decades to come.
Brexit Secretary David Davis, pictured, has said the checks do not affect civil liberties
‘The European Parliament will remain vigilant regarding citizens’ rights and will continue to push for full rights for EU citizens in the UK as well as UK citizens in the EU,’ he said in a statement signed by five other MEPs.
‘It is a core mission of the European project to protect, not to diminish, the fundamental rights of all citizens.’
When British officials raised the criminal checks during negotiations last week, EU officials said the move would represent a breach of rights. Instead, they said that checks should be carried out only where there is suspicion of a criminal history.
UK negotiators maintain the checks would be fair, saying they revolve around a test based in EU law that many Brexiteers have previous ly criticised as soft.
After searching UK databases for criminal convictions and jail sentences, Home Office officials must determine whether offenders pose a ‘sufficiently serious threat’ to society before deportation.
British law, currently applied to those seeking citizenship from outside the EU, states that anyone who has served a minimum 12-month sentence in the UK should be rejected.
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