Friday

29th Mar 2024

Rutte: EU would retaliate against post-Brexit immigration laws

  • The mildly eurosceptic Rutte (r) is a political ally of Cameron (Photo: The Council of the European Union)

If the United Kingdom left the EU and installed tougher immigration laws, European countries would respond with tit-for-tat rules for British citizens, Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte said on Wednesday (1 June).

“It will immediately mean that we will get this race to the bottom, that it will move against the interests of the population,” Rutte told the BBC in an interview, saying it would be “impossible” for EU countries not to retaliate.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Get the EU news that really matters

Instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

  • Boris Johnson (r) wants the UK to leave the EU (Photo: Prime minister's office)

His comments follow a proposal by two prominent Vote Leave campaigners, UK justice minister Michael Gove and former London mayor Boris Johnson.

Gove and Johnson said that after a Brexit, the UK should introduce an Australia-style points system for immigration.

EU citizens who want to move to the UK, would then be assessed based on their skills, they said in a statement published earlier on Wednesday.

“The automatic right of all EU citizens to come to live and work in the UK will end, as will EU control over vital aspects of our social security system. EU citizens will be subject to legislation made by those we elect in Westminster, not in Brussels,” the text said.

It was also signed by employment minister Priti Patel and Labour MP Gisela Stuart.

The 23 June EU referendum has seen a split within the ruling Conservative government, whose prime minister David Cameron is calling on citizens to vote Remain.

The pragmatic and mildly eurosceptic Rutte, who as prime minister of the Netherlands chairs the European Union until 30 June, is a close ally of Cameron.

Brexit Briefing

Cynical campaigns harm public trust

With a month to go before the vote, the Leave and Remain campaigns have made claims that would make the average pub bore blush.

G7 warns Brexit could hurt global growth

G7 leaders in Japan warned that the UK leaving the European Union is a "serious threat" to global economic growth, as EU leaders draw up plans in case British voters choose to leave the bloc.

Cameron warns of Brexit 'madness'

In an TV debate three weeks before the EU membership referendum, the British prime minister defended his promise to curb migration and warned that leaving the EU would be "economic self-harm".

No EU plan for Brexit, Eurogroup chief says

Jeroen Dijsselbloem says EU leaders have no plan in case British voters choose to leave the union and says the pro-EU camp should address emotional as well as rational interests.

Opinion

Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Rather than assuming a pro-European Labour government in London will automatically open doors in Brussels, the Labour party needs to consider what it may be able to offer to incentivise EU leaders to factor the UK into their defence thinking.

Latest News

  1. Kenyan traders react angrily to proposed EU clothes ban
  2. Lawyer suing Frontex takes aim at 'antagonistic' judges
  3. Orban's Fidesz faces low-polling jitters ahead of EU election
  4. German bank freezes account of Jewish peace group
  5. EU Modernisation Fund: an open door for fossil gas in Romania
  6. 'Swiftly dial back' interest rates, ECB told
  7. Moscow's terror attack, security and Gaza
  8. Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Nordic Council of MinistersJoin the Nordic Food Systems Takeover at COP28
  2. Nordic Council of MinistersHow women and men are affected differently by climate policy
  3. Nordic Council of MinistersArtist Jessie Kleemann at Nordic pavilion during UN climate summit COP28
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersCOP28: Gathering Nordic and global experts to put food and health on the agenda
  5. Friedrich Naumann FoundationPoems of Liberty – Call for Submission “Human Rights in Inhume War”: 250€ honorary fee for selected poems
  6. World BankWorld Bank report: How to create a future where the rewards of technology benefit all levels of society?

Join EUobserver

EU news that matters

Join us