Associate citizenship for Brits after Brexit not on Parliament's table

The European Parliament has issued a note to refute the news published in the weekend press about the consideration by the European Union of granting Britons "associate citizenship status" to counter the effects of Brexit on their EU citizenship, actually linked to UK's EU membership.

MEP Charles Goerens (ALDE) had tabled an amendment to a resolution drafted by the European Parliament's Constitutional Affairs Committee on EU reforms refering to EU citizenship but withdrew it before the vote was taken.

Goerens advocated to insert in the Treaties a European associate citizenship for those who feel and wish to be part of the European project but are nationals of a former Member State by offering associate citizens the rights of freedom of movement and to reside in EU territory as well as being represented in Parliament through a vote in the European elections on European lists.

MEP Charles Goerens tweet

"The reference to EU citizenship is therefore not in the draft text which will be submitted for a vote by the Plenary of the Parliament. The vote on the resolution is yet to take place." Parliament states. "At this stage any other interpretations of the amendment and its withdrawal remain in the realm of speculation." It adds.

Last Thursday, the Constitutional Committee of the Parliament voted the draft report by MEP Guy Verhofstadt, President of the Alliance of Liberals & Democrats for Europe (ALDE), on "Possible evolutions of and adjustments to the current institutional set-up of the European Union." The report proposes venues for updating EU treaties to cope with current and future challenges aiming at enhancing consistency, efficiency and accountability of EU governance, its institutions and policies.

Verhofstadt encouraged EU leaders to reinvent Europe during the last summit held in Bratislava making it more dynamic, modern and efficient and proposed to create two kinds of membership which he called "Full Membership" and "Associated Status", to "radically simplify and to reduce the dozens of opt-ins, opt-outs and exceptions to one clear choice."

Weekend British newspapers