About: Benefits Tourism

Let us make freedom of movement fair

On this single issue, David Cameron was right. Member states must have the option to index child benefits to the cost of living where the benefits are paid out, write Morten Loekkegaard and Troels Lund Poulsen.

ECJ decision triggers crisis of social protection system in UK

The EU has spent years building a safety net for the most vulnerable children in society, but the UK’s decision to cut child benefits may not save any money, but could lead the whole system to unravel, writes Jana Hainsworth.

EU court backs UK on limiting child benefits, as Sun backs ‘Leave’

The EU's top court on Tuesday backed Britain's right to limit child benefits to European migrants, backing up one of David Cameron’s key planks of renegotiation – just nine days ahead of the country’s EU referendum.

Brexit deal on EU migrants inspires Switzerland

A February deal allowing Britain to limit the free movement of workers coming from the European Union is giving ideas to the Swiss, who would like similar exceptions applied to their own relations with the 28 member bloc.

‘Facilitating Coexistence’: the endgame for Brexit

There is much said and to be said about this Brexit business, writes Andrew Duff. The Liberal leader gives his view on the continuation of negotiations between now and the meeting of the European Council on 18-19 February.

EU migrants can be denied social benefits, says top court

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) on Tuesday (15 September) ruled that a country can withhold basic benefits from EU migrants if they travel from another member country with no intention of finding a new job.

Migrant access to benefits not automatic

EU citizens are not entitled to claim benefits in a member state they haven’t previously worked in, The Court of Justice of the European Union announced on Thursday (26 March).

British-German axis emerges against benefits tourism

The UK and Germany both want to see tighter controls on access to welfare for EU migrants, according to German MP Stephan Mayer, who was in London to step up the Christian Social Union's (CSU) campaign against so-called benefits tourism in Europe.

Timmermans backs UK push against ‘welfare tourism’

Public support for the European Union's freedom of movement rules will dwindle if welfare abuse is not tackled, a top EU official said on Thursday (5 March), saying Britain can drive change in the Europe Union by engaging more with other member states.

UKIP councillor sacked over ‘negro’ comments

A councillor for Britain's UK Independence Party (UKIP) has been filmed saying she had a problem with "negroes" and would not sit next to one at a dinner party - a new embarrassment for the populist party before a national election in May.

Thousands of Britons on benefits across EU

Unemployed Britons in Europe are drawing much more in benefits and allowances in the wealthier EU countries than their nationals are claiming in the UK, according to the newspaper The Guardian.

EU judges rule against ‘welfare tourists’ in nod to Cameron

European Union member states can block jobless immigrants from receiving specific welfare benefits, Europe's top court said on Tuesday (11 November), in a ruling likely to aid British Prime Minister David Cameron's efforts to tackle so-called "welfare tourism".

Anglican Church leader troubled by Britain’s anti-immigration rhetoric

The Archbishop of Canterbury, spiritual leader of the Anglican Church, said on Monday (27 October) that he had seen evidence of a rising tide of xenophobic sentiment within British society and was worried by the tone of the country's political debate over immigration.

Britain ‘under siege’ from migrant EU workers, says defence chief

Limiting the number of European Union citizens who are allowed to work in Britain is among proposals to curb immigration being looked at by the government, Defence Minister Michael Fallon said on Sunday (26 October).

Cameron cuts EU migrants’ unemployment and child benefits

British Prime Minister David Cameron on Tuesday (29 July) set out new welfare rules to cut European migrants' access to social security payments, marking the latest in a string of British measures aimed at addressing voters' concerns over immigration.

UKIP buys advert to deny racism after Farage’s Romanian slip-up

Britain's UK Independence Party (UKIP) on Monday (19 May) took out an advert in a national newspaper to assert it was not racist as rival politicians and the media united to condemn its characterisation of Romanian immigrants.

Danish employers’ chief: ‘We are completely dependent on Denmark being part of the core of the EU’

The Danish European Parliament election campaign has focused heavily on benefits tourism and criticism of the EU's single market and free movement. But the benefits of open labour markets in the EU outweigh the problems, says the CEO of the Confederation of Danish Employers (DA) Jørn Neergaard Larsen. Together with the major labour unions, DA has published a declaration on the EU and the labour market, in attempt to reverse the negative debate.

Germany prepares tighter controls on EU ‘welfare tourists’

A government panel has recommended that Germany screen job-seekers from other European Union states for "welfare tourists" and people not qualified for employment and then expel benefit fraudsters and block their return for a fixed period.