EU nationals allegedly lobby parliament to protect their rights

Report has it that nationals from other European countries are seriously lobbying members of parliament to protect them, saying that they the impact of the uncertainty they have been going through is becoming unbearable.

Also, the House of Lords is planning to give Theresa May a big blow concerning the Article 50 Brexit bill on Wednesday, with respect to the protection of the rights of  EU citizens living in the UK. The move is said to be supported by cross-party MPs

If that is done successfully, it will be seen as a test on the government, and will need Commons to make a fresh vote on an issue that saw three MPs - Ken Clarke, Andrew Tyrie and Tania Mathias rebel against the Government whip in similar votes earlier this month.

The level of uncertainty has forced tens of thousands to take matters into their own hands, by applying for permanent residence under an EU law provision which guarantees it after five years.

Some have had to produce reams of documentation dating back years to prove their residence.

Sabine von Toerne, a midwife who came to the UK from Germany seven years ago, has found that her years training in the NHS means she retrospectively needs to prove she has been covered by comprehensive health insurance.

She did not need this at the time and, in fact, such policies were very rare.

She was in Parliament last week and told Sky News: "It does make you feel like a second class citizen, to be honest.

"We've heard about people who are applying for jobs and are disadvantaged because they don't know if they are going to be able to stay or not."

According to experts estimate, about 2.7 of the 3.5 million EU citizens living in the UK already have a wide-ranging right to permanent residence, having lived in the UK for five years.

But then new figures indicates that since Brexit 18,500 applications have been refused - with applications up seven-fold to 32,481 and refusals up five-fold on last year to 8,618 in the final three months of 2016.

Contrarily the Theresa May’s Government has vowed to resist any Lords amendments and said the issue of reciprocal rights is one of its top priorities in Brexit negotiations.

Some Government officials have privately blamed bigger EU countries, such as Germany, for rebuffing an offer to settle the issue early in the process.