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WHAT IF BRITAIN QUITS EU
* The long queues outside the Portuguese embassy in Goa may soon be a thing of the past
WHAT DO UK POLLS INDICATE
* A neck-in-neck race with 37% wanting to stay in, 38% wanting to leave and 25% undecided
IMMIGRATION AND GOANS
* In 2014 alone, a net migration of 318,000 into UK
* Almost 3 million EU citizens now live in Britain
* Of those, a little over 20,000 are Goans
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LONDON: The referendum to decide if the UK will continue being a member of the European Union (EU) is as relevant to Goans as it is to the British. The result will determine the future of Goa’s Portuguese passport holders. Initially anticipated in autumn 2016, the date for the referendum is now set for 23 June, 2016.
How will the referendum affect Goan Portuguese passport holders already in Britain? Nelson Carvalho, president of the Goan Swindon Association UK, says, ‘the news hasn’t really kicked in as yet, once it kicks in, people in the community will start talking’. Carvalho arrived in Britain 22 years ago and now holds a supervisory position with the retailer WH Smith. He lives in Swindon with his wife Roslyn and two children.
The Portuguese Goan community in Britain is not alone in facing an uncertain future. As of now, it’s too early to tell if either the ‘In’ or ‘Out’ campaign has managed to secure an edge. A YouGov polls shows a neck-in-neck race with 37% wanting to stay in, 38% wanting to leave and 25% undecided. In the end, with a quarter of the population undecided, the decision to leave or remain will be made purely at a visceral level, and for many that goes back to the burning question of immigration.
In 2014 alone, official figures reveal there was a net migration of 318,000 into the United Kingdom. Almost 3 million EU citizens now live in Britain. Of those, according to statistics released by the Migration Observatory at Oxford University, a little over 20,000 are Goans.
The large influx of immigrants coming into the UK has fouled the mood of the electorate. Immigrants are generally seen as sponging off government welfare payments, commonly called benefits, and being a burden on the economy. Carvalho says, ‘I have never taken any benefits. The Goans who come here are hardworking people. Most of those who have been here for some years have bought houses. They are home-owners, they pay their mortgage and contribute to the economy’.
Antonio Mendes, arrived in Britain in 2005; he now lives in Southall and works at a hotel. He says, ‘Goans are into everything. They are employed in all sorts of jobs; hotel, airport, Tesco supermarket’. Despite the success of this hard-working, church-going and fun-loving community in integrating with British society, the majority of Goans arriving via the Portuguese passport route work in factory, janitorial, retail, airport and hospitality industry jobs, concentrated around Swindon or in the London boroughs of Ealing, Southall, Wembley and the Heathrow area.
One person speaking on condition of anonymity said, ‘Goans do depend on child benefits, housing benefits and job seekers allowance. I know of Goans who have even brought their elderly parents to Britain and take pension credits. Without benefits, it will be difficult for Goans’.
Going forward, lack of benefits will pose a serious problem even if Britain decides to remain in the EU. Prime Minister David Cameron has vowed, to apply an ‘emergency brake’ on benefits. Under the new arrangement, migrants will not be able to avail of benefits for up to four years. Without the benefits cushion to fall back on, it will be difficult to weather the turbulent waves of recession and unemployment which periodically afflict the British economy.
MP Keith Vaz of Goan origin supports staying in the EU. He said, ‘I support British membership of a reformed European Union and feel that it is important that the country remains in the EU for both economic and security reasons’. But what would happen if the electorate decides to leave?
This will immediately trigger Article 50, whereby the prime minister will declare an imminent separation from the EU. From then on, it will take up to two years to disentangle from Europe. In the interim, it’s impossible to say what the immigration rules will be. It is likely, Portuguese passport holders will be treated like any other guest workers and will have to qualify for visas and work-permits to stay in the UK.
Maria Dias from Santa Cruz, Goa, arrived 14 years ago, and is closely involved with the Goan community in Swindon. She says, ‘it’s difficult to say how many Goans with Portuguese passports have taken British citizenship. Some are waiting for their children to grow up and take the citizenship test.’ Customarily, Goans would hold on to their Portuguese passports because there was little to be gained by acquiring a British passport; a process which costs upwards of £1000 per person. However, Carvalho informs, ‘those who have been here for five or more years have all got their ‘Indefinite Leave to Remain’. The ILR status grants them the right to live here indefinitely. Immigrants can apply for it if they have lived in Britain for five continuous years.
But what of those Goans who don’t qualify for ILR or are holding Portuguese passports and are as yet to arrive in the UK? In the event of Britain leaving the EU, they will of course still be able work in the rest of Europe or settle in Portugal but as Mendes says, ‘the Portuguese themselves are coming to Britain in search of work, why will we go to Portugal?’
The long queues outside the Portuguese embassy in Goa may soon be a thing of the past, if Britain does decide to exit from the European Union.
