A Tory MP made an emotional plea to Theresa May not to force him to vote against the rights of his Italian parents at Prime Minister’s Questions today.
“Can the Prime Minister assure me that she will never instruct me to vote in a lobby to take away the rights of my parents, and millions of EU citizens”, Alberto Costa asked.
“The Vote Leave campaign were very clear that the rights of EU citizens would not be affected if they voted to leave the EU.
My parents are Italian, they have never naturalised, and they’ve been in this country for 50 years.”
The prime minister was unable to say whether she would guarantee his parents’ rights, but repeated that she “wanted, intended, and expected” to be able to do so following Brexit negotiations.
“I recognise the personal passion with which my honourable friend speaks”, she said.
“I want, intend, and expect to be able to guarantee the rights of those EU citizens living here in the UK.
“But I also want to see the rights of UK citizens living in EU member states being guaranteed too. As I’ve said previously I would hope this is a position which we can discuss with my European colleagues at an early stage”.
This comes as a new campaign urges the Prime Minister to allow British nationals to retain their European Union citizenship after Brexit.
The European Movement UK plans to deliver a petition to the Prime Minister asking her to allow those who want to remain EU citizens to do so.