British Prime Minister Theresa May has committed to cracking down on immigration from the EU, while casting doubts on introducing a points-based system, according to her comments released on Sunday.
May’s plans for immigration policy in the wake of Britain’s decision to leave the EU remained a key discussion point as she traveled to the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou to attend a G20 summit.
“They [the voters] wanted to see an ability to be able to control the movement of people from the European Union and obviously that’s what I say, not free movement as it has been in the past,” May told journalists on Saturday.
The June 23 referendum saw Britain vote by 52 percent to leave the EU, following a campaign which was dominated by immigration.
May was appointed after her predecessor former British prime minister David Cameron resigned following the vote and — although she campaigned to remain in the EU — she has promised to forge ahead with Brexit.
Since the result, the new government has grappled with how Britain could restrict migration from the remaining 27 EU nations and thus violate a core EU principle, without losing access to the bloc’s single market.
British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson — one of the leaders of the Brexit campaign — has said such a combination can be achieved with a points-based immigration system similar to the Australian model, but May cast doubt on such an approach, while recalling her expertise as a former British home secretary.
“One of the issues is whether or not points-based systems do work, but what I’m saying is, the British people... didn’t want the free movement to continue as it has in the past. We will be going out there to deliver on that,” May said.
During the discussion en route to China, May said she did not want to “give away any sort of part of our negotiating hand” ahead of formal talks with the EU.
She said there was no “single silver bullet” which could provide an answer to dealing with immigration.
“You have to look across the board, you have to look at the whole range of issues, and obviously dealing with people if they’re discovered here [Britain] illegally,” she said.
May reiterated that there would be no change in the status of EU citizens currently living in the nation before Britain leaves the bloc.
“I expect to be able to guarantee their status. The only circumstances in which that wouldn’t be possible is if other EU countries don’t guarantee the status of British citizens who are living in other EU countries,” she said.
The prime minister has repeatedly expressed her intentions to be ambitious in the EU negotiations, adopting an upbeat tone echoed by British Secretary of State for Exiting the EU David Davis.
“This is an historic and positive moment for our nation. Brexit isn’t about making the best of a bad job. It is about seizing the huge and exciting opportunities that will flow from a new place for Britain in the world. There will be new freedoms, new opportunities, new horizons for this great country,” Davis said in a statement.
‘IN A DIFFERENT PLACE’: The envoy first visited Shanghai, where he attended a Chinese basketball playoff match, and is to meet top officials in Beijing tomorrow US Secretary of State Antony Blinken yesterday arrived in China on his second visit in a year as the US ramps up pressure on its rival over its support for Russia while also seeking to manage tensions with Beijing. The US diplomat tomorrow is to meet China’s top brass in Beijing, where he is also expected to plead for restraint as Taiwan inaugurates president-elect William Lai (賴清德), and to raise US concerns on Chinese trade practices. However, Blinken is also seeking to stabilize ties, with tensions between the world’s two largest economies easing since his previous visit in June last year. At the
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese