Britain CAN’T stop EU freedom of movement from the day after Brexit, lawyers warn

BRITAIN can’t completely control EU immigration from the day after Brexit, lawyers have warned. Experts told the Government that plans to end freedom of movement at midnight on October 31 would likely lead to a lost court case. Home Secretary Priti Patel had signalled it would come to an end as soon we left the […]

BRITAIN can’t completely control EU immigration from the day after Brexit, lawyers have warned.

Experts told the Government that plans to end freedom of movement at midnight on October 31 would likely lead to a lost court case.

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Home Secretary Priti Patel had signalled it would come to an end as soon we left the EU.

The abolition of freedom of movement won’t come into law in time for the Halloween deadline.

Ministers looked at plans to tweak the rules without a change to legislation, but the Government’s No Deal cabinet was told it would end up in the courts, The Sunday Times revealed.

And they would have a 70 per cent chance of losing the case, they predicted.

Only after it’s been voted on in the Commons and the Lords will Britain be able to start up a completely new system.

A Whitehall source said: “The legal advice was that this would not be an appropriate use of the powers and there would have to be an affirmative vote in both houses of parliament for it to happen.”

But ministers are to argue that freedom of movement as it currently is will end after Brexit day.

Michael Gove said this morning that the rules would end “as we understand it, yes” and new ones will come into place immediately.

EU nationals who have been jailed for 12 months will be unable to enter the UK – meaning an end to foreign criminals trying to come here.

And other EU nationals will have to use a passport, rather than ID cards.

Boris Johnson has promised to implement an Australian-style points based system in the UK after we leave the EU.

It means people will all have to apply to come here and only those with a certain number of points will be allowed to do so.

The Home Office said: “Freedom of movement as it currently stands will end on October 31 and after Brexit the government will introduce a new, fairer immigration system.”

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