EU Nationals: Social Security Benefits

(asked on 7th July 2015) - View Source

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what contingency plan he has made for if it is viable to secure agreement with his EU counterparts for the introduction of a four-year qualifying period for EU nationals to access in-work benefits in negotiating the UK's membership of the EU.


Answered by
David Lidington Portrait
David Lidington
This question was answered on 13th July 2015

As the Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), said in his speech on 21 May 2015, the Government is concerned that under the current free movement rules, national welfare systems can provide an unintended additional incentive for large migratory movements. Consequently reforming welfare and particularly access to benefits for mobile EU nationals in order to reduce incentives for migration is one of our priorities for the renegotiation. The Prime Minister is working with his European partners to achieve this.

Reticulating Splines