Keep up with the latest from Bremain in Spain
Bremainers Ask – Lord Andrew Adonis
Lord Andrew Adonis is a Labour peer, historian and journalist who served in government under both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. Prior to entering frontline politics, he was a fellow of Nuffield College, Oxford, Public Policy Editor at the Financial Times and a...
Votes for Life Update from the British Embassy
The government has announced today that British citizens who have moved abroad will be given ‘votes for life’ as the UK Government scraps the arbitrary 15-year limit on the voting rights. All British citizens who are living overseas who have been previously registered...
Citizen’s Rights On The Agenda – House Of Lords – European Affairs Committee
A month ago, the new House of Lords European Affairs Committee was formed, to replace the now defunct EU Select Committee. As expected, many of the members of the former committee, including the Chair, Lord Kinnoull, transferred across to the new committee. This was...
Life after Brexit: What are the issues that worry Brits in Spain the most?
From concerns about healthcare to problems regarding work and residency, a new survey reveals the main worries that are keeping UK nationals living in Spain awake at night, Bremain in Spain head Sue Wilson explains. Back in April, Bremain in Spain launched a...
Lord Frost, chief Brexit negotiator: UK-EU relationship a “bit bumpy”
Minister of State, Lord David Frost – best known as the chief Brexit negotiator – has had a busy few days. On Saturday 15 May, he joined the prime minister in welcoming the Irish Taoiseach, Michael Martin, to a meeting at Chequers. Then on Monday and Tuesday, Frost...
Votes for Life – a Bremain Campaign Update May 2021
Bremain in Spain has been campaigning since 2017 for the repeal of the fifteen year rule which has prevented UK citizens living overseas from being able to cast their vote in UK elections. You can read the history of UK overseas voting in the House of Commons Library....
Electoral integrity bill: voter rights vs voter suppression
After many false starts, and countless broken promises, there was a glimmer of hope for Brits abroad – and their voting rights – in Tuesday’s Queen’s speech. The scrapping of the arbitrary 15-year voting rule has been a longstanding, and oft-repeated, Conservative...
Bremainers Ask …. Richard Corbett, former MEP
Richard Corbett was an MEP from 1996-2009 and 2014-2020. During that time, he was the spokesman of the Socialist & Democrat Group on constitutional affairs, Parliament's rapporteur on the Lisbon Treaty and, for the last three years, Leader of the Labour MEPs and...
Tourism and the Spanish economy
Bremain Chair Sue Wilson writes for Yorkshire Bylines: The economies of countries around the world have been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. In some cases, like the UK, the severe impact has in part been due to poor or late decisions on safety measures. Elsewhere,...
Authority Magazine Interview with Bremain Chair Sue Wilson
'Don’t feel intimidated by so-called experts — you are the expert and you know more than they do! — When I first met a committee of politicians, I thought I would learn something from them. As it turns out, politicians don’t know a great deal (except perhaps on their...
The challenges of law enforcement and security after Brexit
Bremain in Spain Vice Chair Lisa Burton writes for Yorkshire Bylines about post Brexit security issues: As members of the European Union, Britain played a crucial role in creating policy and the many complex systems on criminal justice and law enforcement. Our...
Is it time to drop the divisive labels?
Following the Brexit referendum, those of us with strong feelings about the outcome, exchanged our former political identities for Brexit ones. Instead of categorising ourselves as socialists, centrists, or conservatives – whether with a small ‘c’ or a big one – our...
Covid and the treatment of Brits in the EU
Bremain Chair Sue Wilson recently wrote this piece for Yorkshire Bylines about the impact of Covid and treatment of Brits in the EU: Ever since the Brexit referendum, Brits living in the EU have complained about being invisible, and with good cause. In the early...
Typically Spanish Interview Sue Wilson
Bremain Chair Sue Wilson gave an interview to Typically Spanish News in English about how Brexit was going ninety days in. You can listen to the interview below:
Neither Spain nor the EU are to blame for some Britons having to leave
Bremain Chair Sue Wilson writes for The Local.es: Some 500 Britons are to be deported from Spain, according to claims in the British media. Sue Wilson, from Bremain in Spain responds to the phoney reports and also the false accusations that somehow the Spanish and the...
Beyond Brexit: Lords EU select committee conclusions and recommendations
Bremain Chair Sue Wilson recently summarised the conclusions and recommendations from the House of Lords EU Select Committee for Yorkshire Bylines: You’d be forgiven for thinking the government prefers to avoid scrutiny at all costs. Whether it’s Brexit or covid, it’s...
Remoaner: Telling Our Story Ep. 6 (Sue Wilson)
As part of James Dart's Remoaner Podcast series, I was invited to be interviewed about Brexit & Bremain. The questions included: Who is Sue Wilson? What was your immediate reaction to the Brexit referendum result? Why did you get involved with campaigning? When...
Stereotypes of Brits abroad
Our Chair Sue Wilson recently wrote this article for Yorkshire Bylines about the stereotypes of the British abroad: When the British press write about Brits abroad – most especially about Brits in Spain – we’re often depicted as a collection of stereotypes. We play...
Amazon sales after Brexit: the tale of our first shipment
Bremain in Spain's Vice Chair Lisa Burton recently wrote this piece about her company's post Brexit experience for Yorkshire Bylines: For many sellers on Amazon, Brexit is causing significant problems. Last week my company decided to attempt our first shipment...
Brits in Spain risk being caught out by 90-day rule
Bremain Chair Sue Wilson's latest piece for Yorkshire Bylines: When the Brexit transition period expired on 31 December 2020, British citizens lost their EU citizenship status. As a result, we became third-country nationals, with visits to Europe now limited to stays...
International Women’s Day … 8 March 2021
I’ve always had mixed feelings regarding events or campaigns aimed at a limited, albeit a discriminated against, sector of society. Is it fair or appropriate to celebrate the social, economic and political achievements of women while leaving men out of the...
Bremain in Spain – a Brexit Legacy
Bremain in Spain Chair Sue Wilson recently gave an interview for International Women's Day to the new editor of The Olive Press, Fiona Govan: Like many a British tourist, I fell in love with Spain at an early age. The idea of retiring on the costas was a dream that...
Government pledges £2.5m to provide votes for life for Brits overseas
2019 Conservative manifesto: “We will make it easier for British expats to vote in Parliamentary elections, and get rid of the arbitrary 15-year limit on their voting rights”. Our Chair Sue Wilson writes for Yorkshire Bylines about the upcoming Electoral Reform Bill...
#Living The Dream, Expat Life Stripped Bare
Sue Wilson , Chair of Bremain, is part of an anthology called '#LivingtheDream Expat Life Stripped Bare', which features ten women who share their personal and powerful stories of the emotional and practical realities of living away from 'home' or their place of...