Irish in Britain have nothing to fear from Brexit, says Farage
IRISH people in Britain have nothing to fear if the country votes to quit the European Union, United Kingdom Independence Party leader Nigel Farage has said.
The MEP said Ireland and the UK’s shared past and ‘what we have in common’ meant there was ‘zero prospects’ that Irish people would be subjected to the immigration controls the party wants to impose against other EU nationals.
The anti-Europe party has called for migrant workers from EU member states from the continent to be subjected to an Australian-style points system so their job skills can be vetted before they are allowed to take up employment in Britain.
But Mr Farage said Irish citizens would not have to go through any checks if the UK left the EU. Free movement between the two islands would remain in place under the common travel agreement, he said.
The UKIP leader was speaking in London at a Brexit debate called ‘In or Out? That is the Question’. Mr Farage said: ‘For nearly a hundred years, because of our history, because of so much we’ve shared together in the past, because of what we have in common, there is absolutely zero, zero prospects, of the free movement between Britain and Ireland changing.’
The UKIP leader also took part in a Brexit debate in Belfast last night.
Britain will vote in the Stay/Leave referendum on June 23. A Ladbrokes betting barometer yesterday put the chances that the pro-EU campaigners would win at 73%, compared to 27% for the Leave camp.