What does Brexit mean for UK citizens living in the EU27? Talking Brexit with the British in Spain II

This report offers some interim insights into Brexit and how this is lived and experienced by British citizens living in Spain. It draws on research conducted by Karen O'Reilly for the BrExpats research project.

Karen has been a regular visitor to Spain for research purposes since 1993, and is author of The British on the Costa del Sol. This report is mainly based on her most recent field trip in January 2018.

• Most people Karen spoke to in Spain, in January, felt somewhat reassured by the December agreement.
• The December agreement clarified some issues around right to remain and access to services, and these are addressed in the last section of the report.
• However, many complex issues remain unresolved, such as for older people who are having to think about what care provisions there might be for them, people with complex family arrangements, and those with mixed nationality families.
• There is a sense that, in terms of reassurance about one’s rights going forward, many people are simply learning how to go on under difficult circumstances.
• During this January field trip, Karen spoke to people who had voted to Remain and people who had voted to Leave the EU.
• She found that for both groups, and those in-between, Brexit taps into emotional responses around national identity.
• Leavers and Remainers both seem to feel passionately about Britain’s role in the world, its future, and its people.