Layla Moran, Liberal Democrat candidate for Oxford West and Abingdon, has condemned the Conservative government for not offering permanent residency in the UK for EU nationals. Official figures reveal that thousands of EU nationals living in Oxfordshire have not been offered permanent residency in the UK.
Layla Moran and the local Liberal Democrats have accused the Government of leaving local families from the EU in “legal limbo” and throwing people’s lives into uncertainty.
The figures show that of the 24,930 EU nationals across Oxfordshire who have applied for permanent residency, fewer than half or only 12,280 have been offered settled status. 8,730 have been granted pre-settled status, which only gives the temporary right to stay in the UK. Another 3,850 EU nationals living in Oxfordshire have applied for permanent residency but not yet received a response.
2,330 of the applications for settled status came from under-18s.
Commenting on the figures Layla Moran said:
"EU nationals contribute hugely to the success of our community in Oxfordshire, and we should be celebrating that contribution. Instead, the Conservative government are placing these citizens in legal limbo by not offering thousands of residents official residency in the UK.
"If the Conservative government wanted to celebrate the fantastic contribution these EU nationals make to our county and our country, they would stop the uncertainty of Brexit and grant them permanent residency. Instead the Conservative government are making them live under a cloud of uncertainty.
"The Liberal Democrats recognise the contribution EU citizens have made to this country, and will end the uncertainty by stopping Brexit, protecting the rights of EU citizens and building a brighter future for everyone in Britain"
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