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Oh, how the tables have turned. George Eustice, one of the biggest Brexit cheerleaders within the Conservative Party, has made a sobering admission in regards to Brexit – and he is now encouraging the free movement of citizens between the UK and the EU.
The statement comes as public support for Brexit continues to collapse. New opinion polls show a large majority of Brits now want to rejoin the EU – but neither of the two main political parties believe that reunification is the best way forward.
It’s a remarkable turnaround from the politician, who is quitting Westminster next year. He has justified his u-turn by claiming that Brexit backers only ever wanted ‘controlled immigration’, and slammed Theresa May for withdrawing the prospect of temporary visas.
Eustice, the former Environmental Secretary, also argues that the government policy of prioritizing ‘highly-skilled workers’ is failing miserably, and contributing to the UK’s inflation nightmare. He believes that labour shortages are not being addressed properly.
His solution? Well, it could have come from a die-hard Remain voter: Eustice is proposing a ‘youth-mobility visa scheme’, which would allow workers from EU states aged 35-years and under the chance to work in the UK, on temporary two-year visas.
Brexit legacy leads to government u-turns
He believes that a bilateral deal would also encourage young British citizens to undertake similar work abroad. Who’d have thought it, eh? Speaking to the Observer, Eustice championed his idea for a reciprocal visa agreement:
“We are not allowing people to come here to work in sectors like the food industry, even though there are acute labour shortages in these sectors, and that is contributing to inflation. So that is a big problem.”
“My proposal is that we commence bilateral negotiations with EU member states, starting with countries like Bulgaria, Romania and the Baltic states, and widen it to the whole of the EU eventually, to establish a reciprocal youth-mobility visa scheme.” | George Eustice
