The politics of free movement: Romania, Bulgaria and the future of the EU debate in Britain
The panel will discuss how the removal of transitional controls for Romania and Bulgaria will affect next year's European elections and the broader debate about Britain's place in the EU.
Guests
Sunder Katwala, Director, British Future
Alex Glennie, Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Public Policy Research
Chaired by
Mark Leonard, Director, ECFR
The extension of free movement to Romania and Bulgaria has sparked much political and media debate in the UK. David Cameron wrote recently that 'free movement needs to be less free', seeking to tighten welfare access in January 2014 and to spark a broader debate about how free movement could be modified for future accessions. The seminar will hear new evidence on public attitudes from deliberative and polling work from British Future, and policy ideas about how to manage free movement and the politics of migration from IPPR. The meeting will also discuss how the removal of transitional controls for Romania and Bulgaria will affect next year's European elections – and the broader debate about Britain's place in the EU.
Sunder Katwala is the Director of British Future.
Alex Glennie is a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) and the author of a forthcoming publication on the imminent lifting of transitional restrictions on A2 migrants.
Mark Leonard is co-Founder and Director of ECFR.