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CostaBlancaPeople 22nd - 28th January 2019
Voting agreement lets Britons have their say A
n historical agreement signed between the UK and Spain will allow Britons have their say in the local politics of Spain, despite the outcome in terms of Brexit. The pact, signed on Monday between Spain and the United Kingdom, will have a huge bearing on the local elections which are set to take place on May 26th. The agreement, signed in Madrid on Monday, allows British residents in Spain to maintain the right to vote in municipal elections after Brexit. It also allows Spanish residents of the UK to participate in elections there. The deal will have a notable impact in the Alicante Province, especially here in the Vega Baja and further north in Marina Alta where a large proportion of the voting population is British. According to the latest available statistics (INE, 2017), around 63,000 Britons are officially resident in the Alicante province with the right to vote. The signing of the agreement was
carried out by Secretary of State for the EU, Marco Aguiriano, alongside British ‘Minister for Brexit’, Robin Walker (British Undersecretary of State for the Department for Exiting the European Union). The deal was authorised last Friday by the Council of Ministers, giving the green light for its provisional application from the day the UK leaves the EU. With the deadline for Brexit looming, Britons in Spain have to register to vote to retain their right to do so in municipal elections here. If you haven’t registered to vote in a previous election, the deadline for registration is January 30th. Statistics estimate that there are around 300,000 Britons resident in Spain, but only around 90,000 are registered on the electoral role. According to diplomatic sources, Spain is the first EU country to sign an agreement of this type with the United Kingdom; negotiation for which began at the end of October last
year. This new deal is of great significance to British residents in Spain as, regardless of whether Brexit happens with or without a deal, this aspect of citizens rights is not provided for in the exit agreement. For the municipal elections on May 26th, this Continued on page 10
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