Europeans in Britain fret about future after Brexit

Frankfurt sets out to woo bankers

The vote by Britons to quit the EU has unsettled many of the three million Europeans who have made Britain their home and raised questions about their future in a country where many have lived for years.

“I'm scared,” said Polish national Ella Vine, 31, chief executive of a healthcare charity, who has been in Britain for nine years. “I don't plan any changes, but what can I do,” she said. “I can do nothing. I don't know what will be the position of people like me - it’s a disaster.”

Immigration was one of the central topics of the EU referendum debate, with “Out” campaigners arguing that only by leaving the EU would Britain be able to control the number of new arrivals.

EU citizens living in Britain, as well as Brits living in Europe, will now have to wait, as the vote will trigger at least two years of divorceproceedingswiththeEU.

Among EU citizens living in Britain, only Irish nationals were per mitted to vote in the referendum, giving Europeans a sense of powerlessness.

“I feel a bit more foreign than I did yesterday," said Carlos Ardid Candel, 32, a data analyst from Spain, who has lived in Britain since 2001.

“It's like finding out what someone really thinks about you when you weren't expecting it.” Prime Minister David Cameron sought to reassure the builders, bankers, plumbers, lawyers, nurses, waiters and other types of workers from across the EU that there would be no immediate changes to their circumstances.

But his words offered little comfort to some, who felt a keen sense of rejection.

“(I feel) confused, angry and disgusted," said engineer Alkis Voliotis, 36, from Greece who has lived in Britain for over five years. “I feel sick in my stomach thataprojectIhavebelievedinall my life might start to unravel.”

London voted to stay in the EU and the city's Mayor Sadiq Khan told the almost one million Europeans there that they should continue to feel welcome. “We value the enormous contribution you make to our city and that will not change,” he said.

Romanian Raluca Cioroianu, who has lived in the UK for three years and works as a farm shop supervisor, said her future in the country would depend on how well Britain's economy can weather the impact of Brexit.

“I feel a bit insecure now,” the 39-year-old said.

“I’m more worried about being here from an economic point of view. In terms of employment, I'm wondering if I will have an opportunity to do better here or not. I will have to see.” Reuters

Frankfurt, June 24: “You cry twice when you get sent to Frankfurt once when you arrive and once when you leave." That is the rallying cry of Germany's financial capital as it tries to shake off its image as one of Europe's most boring cities and woo bankers to move there following Britain's decision to quit the European Union. Though it is decried as a soulless city, with few cultural offerings and lacking appealing architecture, Frankfurt's official marketing office did not wait long before kicking off an image campaign following the referendum result. Aiming to court banks and financial institutions considering relocating staff from London, Frankfurt Main Finance set up a direct hotline for interested firms and has scheduled road shows in London and other British cities. “We want to send the message loud and clear: “Welcome to Frankfurt. How can we help you?’” said the head of Frankfurt Main Finance, Hubertus Vaeth. “The welcome banner is hung and Frankfurt's doors are wide open.” Britain's relationship with the EU following the leave vote is unclear but EU officials have said UK-based banks and financial firms would lose automatic access to sell services across Europe if Britain does not apply vital EU principles. Frankfurt, the birthplace of German poet Goethe, has only about 710,000 residents. Despite its glimmering skyscrapers, it appears like a sleepy village compared to the British capital, with travel times to its international airport from the city centre only 15 minutes. The city’s marketing office expects 10,000 bankers to relocate from London over the next five years, a roughly 2-percent share of all financial workers in the British capital. Frankfurt ranked seventh in global consultancy Mercer's 2016 quality of living report, well above London at place 39. Others agree that Frankfurt could turn out to be an attractive continental European alternative, mainly due to its established financial infrastructure and its role as headquarters of the ECB. Reuters

EU citizens living in Britain, as well as Brits living in Europe, will now have to wait, as the vote will trigger at least two years of divorce proceedings with the EU