So Brits who live abroad can now vote in the General Election.

I notice that students who do not live in Scotland pay for university education while Scottish students get their uni education free. Another anomaly.

dogsmother

I think you pay your taxes and you are entitled to vote and have your say. If not then not really. Pay more attention to the place where have chosen to live and work. Embrace what you have, not what have chosen to leave behind.

Agree with you; if you don't live here you should not vote. Different for the forces though, they should still get to vote and people working overseas for a short term.

Joseann

Fair point. But just as a silly example, I've heard comments moaning about how unheathily packed in and crowded the UK is. What they don't mention is that France has 3 times the space!!

It is about what is acatually said though isn't it? When I come to the UK it feels very crowded, is not the same as France is better than the UK because it is not as crowded; which is just daft.

Fair point. But just as a silly example, I've heard comments moaning about how unheathily packed in and crowded the UK is. What they don't mention is that France has 3 times the space!!

Joseann

I do appreciate that you Mamie are in favour of protecting the rights of all ages, but I wish there were less of the NIMBY attitude amongst expat retirees in general.
As I said before, I am not on expat forums because I no longer reside abroad, and to be honest a lot of the time they don't want to hear comparisons that their new country isn't perfect.

I can't speak for migrant retirees in general, only the people I know and they certainly don't have those attitudes. There are very few forums left now.

👍

Joseann

So Mamie, does your voting right need to be granted annually or does it have an open time scale? Or indefinitely until the next change comes along?

We renew it annually, but maintain the right until legislation change. As this change has been under discussion and going through parliamentary legislation for so many years, it is hard to see why people would suddenly start to object, when they have had plenty of time to do so before it became law.
As you will know the citizens of many other countries, (including France), keep their votes for life. I am not sure why a UK government would wish to be out of line.

I do appreciate that you Mamie are in favour of protecting the rights of all ages, but I wish there were less of the NIMBY attitude amongst expat retirees in general.
As I said before, I am not on expat forums because I no longer reside abroad, and to be honest a lot of the time they don't want to hear comparisons that their new country isn't perfect.

So Mamie, does your voting right need to be granted annually or does it have an open time scale? Or indefinitely until the next change comes along?

Joseann

^Looking to the future, it’s the youngest people who will make the difference. If our young people come back to university, they are more likely to stay and add to British life through their jobs and taxes^.
Yes, I find it strange that "inactive" expat retirees aren't nodding in agreement.

As a migrant British citizen abroad I am in favour of protecting the rights of all ages. I would have thought that went without saying. I very much doubt you would find many people who disagreed about the importance of the right to vote and agreed with the imposition of student fees. Brexit is not a separate issue for the potential British students living in Europe who will be seriously disadvantaged when the protection negotiated for them ends in 2027.
I am also concerned about British universities losing so much income from overseas students and the fact that many UK students are suffering from crippling rises in the cost of living, disadvantaging poorer families.
Fairness for everyone almost inevitably involves campaigning.

Sorry, that's a bit of a long post, especially for a Sunday morning, but if anything it shows that hoop jumping has always been around for everyone. Maybe it would be nice to think that fairness for everyone could now also be implemented.

I don't doubt that the rules for expat students have become even more stringent since pesky Brexit, but I know that even 20+ years ago our eldest at 18 was not in the same boat as his peers when entering university. There was no problem accessing the BSc. course, the tricky bit was the finance because we, his parents, had no fixed UK abode on the day his studies commenced. We had sold our UK properties and invested the proceeds abroad, and even had difficulty keeping our bank accounts because we couldn't provide an address. I can't remember all the details back then, and we did get off reasonably lightly thanks to an astute accountant, but it still boils down to the fact that if you choose to go and live abroad you make your own bed and you have to lie in it. No moaning, no complaining about this, that or the other. It's only worth campaigning for something if it will make a difference, and I personally think that expats getting a vote back home will have no great bearing on UK politics.

Interestingly when DS came to do his MSc. course afterwards there wasn't half the palava or inquisition, maybe because they wanted his brain!!
And as an aside, ironically his engineering dissertation was on a French hydro electric power station where we lived, and this later became used as a potential prototype for a UK project!
Brexit is a separate issue.

The British in Europe group of volunteers worked very hard to protect students and their families.
www.britishineurope.org/articles/95076-uk-universities-home-fees-student-finance
I agree that rules for British migrants can be unfair, including university fees and state pension increases for those outside of Europe.
As we can see in the 15 year rule legislation, long-term campaigning can bring about change and protect migrant British citizens.

No mamie they are not!
Children live abroad with their parents in different countries all over the world, not just in Europe. My grandchildren currently live in New Zealand. Perhaps you can explain how Brexit affected my grandchildren in NZ?
This discussion is not about Brexit, it’s about British people ALL over the world voting in our elections or sending their born in Britain, British children to university in the country of their birth.

These changes for students studying in the UK are entirely as a result of Brexit. It is a deplorable situation. Perhaps if British citizens living in other European countries longer than 15 years had had a vote in the referendum, Brexit and its appalling consequences might never have happened.
It would be interesting to know if Brexit voters took it into consideration.

Thanks Joseann. My daughter was unable to claim Child Benefit for her children because the household income was too high. My son has never been able to claim for the same reason.

maddyone if your daughter has claimed UK child benefit for her children this can also help. My DS1 is nearly 40 now, and I know the rules change constantly, so the key is to note everything in advance which might be helpful for your DGC'S futures.

If they have any, that is.

Perhaps they went to live overseas after their children had left home.

Looking to the future, it’s the youngest people who will make the difference. If our young people come back to university, they are more likely to stay and add to British life through their jobs and taxes.
Yes, I find it strange that "inactive" expat retirees aren't nodding in agreement.

A strange silence has descended on this thread. Maybe no one else finds this inconsistent.
I know when we moved abroad, this sort of issue received a far higher priority in our minds than whether we could still vote back home. Luckily our accountant was able to advise and research the best option for our needs.

Thanks Joseann.
Yes, a very complex area.
It’s rather sad though that British children can be disadvantaged in this way, as your son was, whilst people who have lived abroad for donkeys years are given the huge privilege of a vote in our elections.
Looking to the future, it’s the youngest people who will make the difference. If our young people come back to university, they are more likely to stay and add to British life through their jobs and taxes.

It's Student Finance England who grant the loans in conjunction with individual universities. It's a complex area, hence my advice to check everything in advance.
To receive publicly funded student support, including tuition fee and maintenance loans, students must also be allocated home status byStudent Finance England. Student Finance England has no discretion in this area and must follow the regulations.

That’s interesting Nandalot, I looked up the guidelines and it was clear that three years residency in Britain is required in order to qualify as a British student.
My grandchildren have only been out of the country for just over two years, they are British, and both parents are British.
I hope mine can qualify but I’m doubtful. They may of course, have returned before then. Or not want to go to university.

Agreed Joseann.
My daughter seems to think that her children only have to live in England for one year before, as British citizens, they are treated as British by the university system.
Adults make a decision to move abroad, but children don’t, and my grandchildren regularly say they want to return to England because my family is there. They can’t do that at present as their father is refusing to allow my daughter and children to return to Britain (of course my daughter could return, but she won’t leave her children) and my daughter is aware that universities in Britain tend to be better and offer more opportunities than the small number that are here. I’m not saying NZ universities aren’t good, but the opportunities are better in the UK. Anyway, in actual fact, British citizens need to be resident in Britain for three years to qualify as a British student. And as you say Joseann if not treated as a British student, they then cannot apply for student loans.

A strange silence has descended on this thread. Maybe no one else finds this inconsistent.