Latest news with #BritishCitizens
The Guardian
29-05-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
British woman wins back pre-Brexit right to vote in France
A French court has ordered electoral officials to restore a British woman's pre-Brexit right to vote in local elections, triggering calls for a renewed push for a bilateral treaty on electoral enfranchisement in each others countries. Alice Bouilliez, a former British civil servant, who has lived in France for 38 years, said she was 'extremely surprised' but delighted that the Auch court in south-western France had ordered that the authorities put her name back on the electoral register for local elections 'I am extremely happy about the result. When I went to get the ruling from the court I was extremely surprised because I was expecting a knock on the knuckles,' she said. Bouilliez first mounted legal action against the disenfranchisement in 2020 with a case going all the way to the European court of justice, which ruled against her in 2022. The court followed the advice of advocate general Anthony Collins who said the EU treaty had made 'nationality of a member state' an 'essential condition of a person to be able to acquire and retain the status of citizens of the Union and to benefit fully from the rights attaching to that status'. Fouchet said the court did not determine conclusively what happened to those acquired rights British citizens such as Bouilliez had received when she became a permanent resident of France under the free movement rules that were available to Britons before Brexit. The ruling by the Auch tribunal judiciary could now be used to restore rights across France for British citizens living in France before Brexit who did not opt to apply for French citizenship and wanted to win back their right to vote, he said. 'The court ruled that Alice had not committed any crime and that to lose her voting rights was a fundamental and disproportionate infringement of her voting rights,' he said. 'The right to vote is a common good, it is more than just a right,' he said. Though married to a French citizen, Bouilliez never sought citizenship, partly as she made an oath to the British crown when she worked for the Foreign Office. Before Brexit, British citizens living in France had the right to vote in municipal and European parliamentary elections but not legislative elections for the national government or presidency. In a mirror situation, EU citizens including French people living permanently in the UK had the right to vote in local and European elections but not national, with the exception of citizens of Ireland, Cyprus and Malta who can vote in all elections in the UK. The UK had wanted to make reciprocal voting rights part of Brexit deal but the EU did not agree. leaving the UK to negotiate bilateral treaties. So far just five countries, Spain, Portugal, Denmark, Poland and Luxembourg have agreed that each others citizens could continue to have rights in local elections, but there is no such treaty with France. Fouchet called on the French and British governments, who are now benefiting from the reset in the overall EU-UK relationship to open negotiations to restore citizens voting rights. 'The French and UK government should have a bilateral treaty reciprocating the right to vote in municipal elections. I see this judgment as an opportunity, especially in light of the recent UK-EU summit, to get an agreement on this,' he said. The UK government has been approached for comment.
The Independent
29-05-2025
- General
- The Independent
Egypt travel advisory needed for ‘police state' says former British ambassador
Leading figures, including former ambassador to Egypt John Casson, are urging the UK government to update its travel advice for Egypt due to the continued detention of British-Egyptian activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah. A letter to The Times, signed by Casson and others, calls on the government to use all available tools to protect British citizens, including cautioning against travel to Egypt in official travel advice. The letter argues that British citizens who encounter issues with the Egyptian police state cannot expect fair treatment or adequate support from the British government. UN investigators have stated that Abd El-Fattah, imprisoned in Egypt since 2019, is being illegally detained and should be released immediately. Signatories, including Richard Ratcliffe, highlight the incompatibility of Egypt's friendly relations and economic dependence on British tourism with its alleged abuse of British citizens.
The Independent
22-05-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
‘Very sad day' as judge paves way for Chagos deal, says Briton born on island
A British woman born on the Chagos Islands has said it is a 'very, very sad day' after an injunction blocking the signing of the Government's deal over the territory was lifted. The deal, which would see Britain give up sovereignty of the island territory to Mauritius and lease back a crucial military base there, was due to be signed on Thursday morning but was temporarily blocked by an injunction hours earlier before being signed on Thursday afternoon. Mr Justice Goose granted an injunction at 2.25am against the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) after a bid for 'interim relief' was successfully made by Bertrice Pompe, one of two British women born on the Chagos Islands who is set to bring legal action against the Government over the deal. However, after a hearing later on Thursday, a different High Court judge lifted the injunction. Speaking outside the Royal Courts of Justice in central London, Ms Pompe said that while it was a 'very, very sad day', she was 'not giving up'. She said: 'Unfortunately, today has been a very, very sad day, but we take courage with the people we have behind us.' She continued: 'For us to be able to push through our message to the Government. 'They are not treating us, that we are human beings. We have rights. We are British citizens, yet our right doesn't count? 'We don't want to give our rights, hand over our rights to Mauritius. We're not Mauritians, and I don't think we will get any … the rights we're asking for now, we've been fighting for for 60 years. Mauritius not going to give that to us. 'So we need to keep fighting with the British Government to listen to us.' Dozens of protesters were gathered outside the central London court after the ruling, where at one point demonstrators could be heard chanting 'no retreat, no surrender'. Deputy leader of Reform, Richard Tice MP, was also outside the Royal Courts of Justice and could be seen ripping up paper before hugging some of the demonstrators. Michael Polak, a barrister representing Ms Pompe and Bernadette Dugasse, another British woman born on Diego Garcia in the Chagos Islands, said his clients were both disappointed by the decision. He said: 'Previous court decisions in the English courts have mentioned the shameful treatment of the Chagossian people in the 1960s and, unfortunately, under this Government, it seems that shameful treatment has not stopped. 'The people who are closest to the Chagos island, the Chagos islanders, have not been consulted. 'Their future has not been considered by this Government in rushing through and signing a deal this afternoon.' Mr Polak later told reporters that the case now 'moves into the political sphere where British people have to ask themselves and ask their MPs ,'do we agree in what is taking place?'' Planned legal action over the deal, brought by Ms Pompe and Ms Dugasse over the lawfulness of the deal, will continue, the barrister added. Misley Mandarin, a Chagossian who runs the group BIOT (British Indian Ocean Territory) Citizens, said he is 'very disappointed' by the ruling. Speaking to Sky News outside the court, Mr Mandarin said: 'We've been fighting more than 50 years. Like I said earlier, no retreat, no surrender. We will fight to the end … we will not, never, never let our island, a British island, to go to Mauritius.' 'We will try to talk to the Government again, if it don't listen to us,' Mr Mandarin continued. 'We are ready, ready to go to the fight to the end.'
The Independent
13-05-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Could you pass the British Citizenship test?
The 'Life in the UK' test is a key part of the application process to become a British citizen or settle in the UK. Tests were introduced in 2005 for migrants seeking citizenship and in 2007 for people applying for settlement, and are intended to prove applicants have 'sufficient knowledge' of British life. They have proven controversial, however, and have been repeatedly criticised for including questions that many British-born citizens would not know. Under new plans announced this week by Labour, migrants will need to spend up to a decade in the UK before they can apply for citizenship, and they will also face tougher English language requirements. The changes could make British citizenship among the hardest to achieve in the anglophone world. Some have already found the citizenship test hard to pass, with The Independent revealing that one migrant took the test a record 118 times. The test takes 45 minutes and is made up of 24 questions about British traditions and customs. Applicants are required to get 18 of the 24 questions right, a 75 per cent pass rate. Do you think you can do it? We have pulled together a list of some mock questions from here:
