The government has been forced to scrap plans for the proposed end to freedom of movement in a no-deal Brexit scenario, reports suggest.
In a shift of policy, the home secretary, Priti Patel, had planned secondary legislation to stop freedom of movement for EU citizens into the UK, but has been forced to accept that the move could have landed the government in court.
As of today, free movement of EU citizens does not end automatically as a result of a no-deal Brexit as EU law continues to apply until its legal foundation is repealed.
Patel thought she could get around this using a so-called “Henry VIII power” but experts researchers believe that any such move “might run into difficulties”.
The sudden end of freedom to movement on 31st October would have caused major disruption for employers, citizens, university students among others.
The shift in policy did not involve any assessment of how employers, landlords or Border Force officials would be able to distinguish between EU citizens already legally resident in the UK and those coming to the UK for the first time after a no-deal exit from the EU.
