11 Sep, 2019 @ 12:36
1 min read

Spain ropes in almost 1,000 civil servants to battle Brexit fallout as 400,000 ‘hidden’ Brits expected to officially register

VOTE: Sanchez calls snap general election in Spain on Friday at Moncloa Palace
Pedro Sanchez

SPAIN has roped in almost 1,000 civil servants to cope with the extra workload in the event of a no-deal Brexit. 

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez revealed in Congress today that some 875 public positions have been created to reinforce the areas most at risk from no deal.

The preparation efforts have mainly focused on customs, trade, border control and document workers who have been inundated with Brits looking to register as residents or to become fully fledged citizens.

The mass hiring was first authorised by the Council of Ministers on February 8 to anticipate a Brexit that was then scheduled for March 30 but has since been pushed back to October 31.

Spain believes some 400,000 MORE Brits could turn up to register as residents or citizens once the umbrella of free movement is taken away.

That’s more than the current official number of Brits living in Spain, which sits at 330,000, as estimates believe there are hundreds of thousands of Britons who have not registered or signed on to the local padron.

Sanchez referred to the crisis meeting of ministers he chaired last week in La Moncloa to review all the measures undertaken so far and to detect possible shortcomings.

“Spain is prepared for any scenario, including a hard Brexit,” said the leader, who wanted to convey ‘a message of tranquility’ to citizens and potentially affected parties.

He then compared the ‘crisis’ of Brexit to the Catalunya independence question.

“Not even British democracy is safe from polarisation and rupture,” he said, “Let us take note and act accordingly.

“Let’s be the best version of ourselves.”

Laurence Dollimore

Laurence Dollimore is a Spanish-speaking, NCTJ-trained journalist with almost a decade’s worth of experience.
The London native has a BA in International Relations from the University of Leeds and and an MA in the same subject from Queen Mary University London.
He earned his gold star diploma in multimedia journalism at the prestigious News Associates in London in 2016, before immediately joining the Olive Press at their offices on the Costa del Sol.
After a five-year stint, Laurence returned to the UK to work as a senior reporter at the Mail Online, where he remained for two years before coming back to the Olive Press as Digital Editor in 2023.
He continues to work for the biggest newspapers in the UK, who hire him to investigate and report on stories in Spain.
These include the Daily Mail, Telegraph, Mail Online, Mail on Sunday and The Sun and Sun Online.
He has broken world exclusives on everything from the Madeleine McCann case to the anti-tourism movement in Tenerife.

GOT A STORY? Contact newsdesk@theolivepress.es or call +34 951 273 575 Twitter: @olivepress

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