It opens a new chapter in tensions between London and Brussels after Brexit. The European Commission has decided to take the UK to the Court of Justice of the EU, accusing him of having hindered free movement of EU citizens and their families. According to Brussels, in the referral letter, “there were several shortcomings” in the application of EU legislation by the British government.
Post-Brexit movement rights violated
La Brussels complaint focuses on the alleged obstacles imposed from the UK to EU citizens who have settled in the country before the end of 2020. According to the divorce agreement signed between the United Kingdom and the European Union, EU citizens and their family members who resided in the country before the end of the transition period, set for 31 December 2020, should have continued to enjoy free movement rights. According to the Commission, however, this has not happened. Despite numerous reminders, in particular regarding the rights of workers and family members, many problems remained unsolved, since the necessary measures to guarantee these rights have not been adopted.
Although the UK has officially left the European Union on 31 January 2020, the Commission has been trying to resolve the issue since 2020, without success. The divorce agreement, negotiated in 2019, allows the Commission to take legal action if issues related to free movement rights are not resolved by the end of the transition period.
For this reason, the Commission has decided to launch a infringement procedure, bringing the case before the Court of Justice of the EU.
The clash with the British government
Despite repeated reminders from Brussels, the British government has not found an adequate solution to the issues raised. After the May 2020 Notice of Default has always been second letter sent in July 2024, the negotiations did not lead to a satisfactory resolution. The European Commission has therefore decided to take legal action, bringing the matter before the Court of Justice. A move that could have important implications for future relations between the EU and the United Kingdom, at a delicate moment of rapprochement between the two parties.
In response, a British government spokesperson chose to do not comment directly on the Commission's decision, limiting itself to observing that the dispute concerns the transition period which marked the end of the United Kingdom's formal exit from the European Union.
UK: Evidence of rapprochement with the EU
2024 marked a attempt at rapprochement between the United Kingdom and the European Union, particularly after theKeir Starmer takes office at the helm of the British government. The new Labour Prime Minister has expressed his intention to strengthen bilateral ties with Brussels, trying to overcome the period of stalemate that has marked the government of Boris Johnson, marked by tensions related to Brexit and international politics. Despite these signs of openness, the issue of free movement rights, however, remains one of the main obstacles in the negotiations between the two parties.
Recently, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, participated for the first time in a meeting of finance ministers of the EU, a further sign of London's attempt to rekindle relations with Brussels.
In addition to the issue of free movement, the European Commission has also denounced the failure to terminate bilateral treaties of investment still in force between the United Kingdom and six EU member states: Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Croatia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovenia. These treaties were negotiated before Brexit and aimed at protecting foreign investments, ensuring fair treatment and protection against expropriation. According to Brussels, these agreements are now in violation of the European Treaties, as the UK did not formally cancel them after leaving the EU, as required by European regulations.
