Theresa May 'keen to provide certainty' to EU citizens in UK
Theresa May is to meet her Polish counterpart amid calls for clarity on the rights of Poles living in the UK after Brexit.
Monday 28 November 2016 18:20, UK
The Prime Minister and her Polish counterpart will discuss "reciprocity" for European Union citizens living in the UK and Britons living in the EU, a spokeswoman has said.
Theresa May is under pressure to guarantee the rights of more than 800,000 Poles living in the UK when she meets Beata Szydlo at Downing Street to discuss Brexit and defence.
The meeting comes as Mrs May prepares to trigger formal negotiations to leave the European Union at the end of March.
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"As we leave the EU there will be a whole range of issues to address and settle, and clearly access to welfare system will be one of those issues that needs to be looked at," Mrs May's spokeswoman said before the meeting.
"I think what you do see from the Prime Minister and the Polish prime minister is a desire to provide reciprocity to
British citizens and Polish citizens and other citizens in Europe."
She added that both sides were "keen to provide certainty for people".
Mrs May has refused to guarantee the rights of EU citizens living in the UK in the wake of the Brexit vote, insisting that the Government must not "reveal its hand" ahead of Brexit negotiations, which will begin when she triggers Article 50.
Speaking ahead of the summit, she said she was determined to ensure Brexit "will not weaken our relationship" as she spoke of a "new chapter" in UK-Polish relations.
"Today's meeting puts beyond doubt the common ground we share, the importance we attach to our bilateral relationship and the benefits it brings," the PM said.
"We share a clear commitment to take our cooperation to the next level and to firmly establish the UK and Poland as resolute and strategic allies in Europe."
The UK-Poland summit will bring together the prime ministers of the respective countries as well as senior cabinet ministers, including defence and foreign secretaries.
Speaking ahead of the talks, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon told Sky News he had "absolutely no doubt" a deal on the rights of EU citizens living in the UK and Britons living in Europe could be reached.
The Government will also launch a new civil society forum that will meet annually to "deepen ties" between the two nations.
Meanwhile, Michel Barnier, the European Union's Brexit negotiator, is also digging in his heels over any quick deal, insisting last week there would be "no negotiation without notification", adding: "My work is now focused on the EU27 (the remaining EU member states)."
The issue is creating growing tensions in the EU member states and in the UK as millions of UK-based EU citizens and Britons in the EU fret about their status.
There are an estimated 3.3 million EU nationals living in the UK, while about 1.2 million British citizens live in the EU.
At the weekend, 80 MPs wrote to Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, urging him to get on with striking a deal on reciprocal rights as tensions grow between the UK and Brussels.