MEPs reject May’s offer of ‘settled status’ as a ‘damp squib’

A group of MEPs has rejected Theresa May’s offer of “settled status” for EU nationals, saying it casts a “dark cloud” over people’s futures.

Brussels politicians, including the European Parliament’s lead Brexit negotiator Guy Verhofstadt, said the Prime Minister’s plan was a “damp squib” that carried a risk of creating “second-class citizenship”.

The group also said it would block any attempt to extend the two-year Brexitprocessonthegroundsitwould be “unthinkable” for it to drag on.

“The European Parliament will reserve its right to reject any agreement that treats EU citizens, regardless of their nationality, less favourably than they are at present,” the letter to European newspapers said.

There are 10,000 EU nationals living in Dundee alone.

Theresa May’s most senior minister, Damian Green, responded, saying the “basic rights” of EU citizens are protected in the UK’s proposals.

“I would say to him: (Mr Verhofstadt) read our proposal, our proposal is precisely that, that somebody who is here now will keep the rights that they already have and we hope and expect that British citizens living in other EU countries will keep the rights that they already have there.”

In the same interview, Mr Green suggested that while Britain could remain subject to European Court of Justice rulings over a transition period it would eventually leave its jurisdiction.

Meanwhile, doctors warned yesterday that thousands of cancer patients could face delays in their treatment as a result of Mrs May’s Brexit plan to leave the European civil nuclear regulator.

Royal College of Radiologists said pulling out of Euratom could restrict the UK’s access to imported radioactive isotopes widely used in scans and treatment.

It was also reported that Frankfurt and Dublin are emerging as the top destinations for financial services looking to shift operations out of the UK after Brexit, according to EY’s Brexit Tracker

Frankfurt and Dublin have emerged as top destinations for financial services looking to shift operations out of the UK after Brexit.

EY’s Brexit Tracker shows 59 of the 222 companies monitored are either reviewing their primary locations or have started moving parts of their business out of the UK, up from 23 companies in March.

While “several” companies have cited more than one possible hub for those operations, the survey found that most firms have chosen Germany or Ireland as their new EU home.

The survey highlighted that 19 firms have already publicly stated that they will be moving staff or operations.

The findings came as a separate survey from Deloitte found 42% of chief financial officers (CFO) are less upbeat about their company’s prospects than they were during the last quarter.

Only 18% reported a brighter outlook in the second quarter, down from 31% during the previous three months.

The poll – which quizzed 122 CFOs from FTSE 350 and other large private companies – also recorded a more downbeat view on Brexit, with 72% expecting the business environment to worsen after the UK leaves the EU. Just 8% said Brexit would improve conditions.

It marks the highest level of pessimism surrounding the impact of Brexit since the referendum last year.

Finance executives are more pessimistic about the future.