The Ambassador has addressed communities in Cascais, Portimão and Albufeira this past week. She will next move on to Caldas da Rainha (30 March) and Porto, at an as yet unspecified date.
Visits to the Algarve this week saw around 140 residents gather at the Portimão Museum on Tuesday followed by a further meeting at the Albufeira Auditorium the next day where Ambassador Kirsty Hayes addressed members of the Algarve’s largest British expat community.
The Ambassador was joined by British Consul Simona Demuro, and consular staff to answer a variety of questions from the audiences about how the Brexit process will go forward.
Prior to these meetings, the British Ambassador invited The Portugal News to an informal private meeting to discuss concerns surrounding Brexit.
Explaining the next stage of the UK’S ‘divorce’ from the EU, the Ambassador explained: “What Article 50 says is that there is a two-year negotiating window to reach an agreement. Now theoretically you can reach an agreement in a shorter time period, but realistically that is unlikely, because it is quite ambitious and we have a number of significant elections early in that period.”
She stressed that nothing should change in terms of rights and obligations in the next two years.
With regards to concerns expressed by the expat community here in Portugal, Kirsty Hayes said that people mostly want to know about their future post-Brexit.
She revealed that the most common themes have to do with their right to remain in the country.
“But we can safely say that is not a problem. Reciprocal protection of rights is not a problematic issue and I have been assured by members of the Portuguese government that the British community here is extremely valued.”
The Ambassador was also recently present at a meeting between the Foreign Secretary and his Portuguese counterpart, where Augusto Santos Silva stressed that he wanted to encourage more British nationals to come here, especially due to the positive contributions they make and have made to the country.
Health care is another issue that is of concern and one which is frequently raised at the British Embassy’s outreach meetings.
“It is my understanding that any national, not just an EU citizen, who has a residency permit, enjoys access to health care here in Portugal.
“But there are concerns over the EHIC EU health cards and how that will affect British tourists or those who do not have residency in Portugal post-Brexit. That is an issue which will obviously need further discussion as part of the negotiations.”
Ms Hayes added that it is the intention of both the UK and Portugal to ensure that the rights of people resident in either country are protected, though she did explain that she “cannot give concrete assurances on people arriving once Brexit has been finalised.”
The expectation is that some issues will be resolved before the two-year period is over, the Ambassador admitted, but said her advice to British nationals currently living in Portugal, would be to ensure their status is regularised and that they are registered here as only around half of Britons living here are locally documented.
“It is not that people will be thrown out post-Brexit, but it does help to have your situation regularised”, she reasoned, adding that if readers were to experience any problems while trying to complete paperwork at their local authorities to contact the British Embassy.
The general view of Britons here seems to be one of tranquillity, Ms Hayes said.
“It’s a historic moment and it’s natural for people to have worries. The members of the communities I have spoken to have been calm and I haven’t noticed any panic. In general, communities here are well-informed and integrated.”
Questioned over whether there would be any special deal between Portugal and the UK, she replied that there “is no potential to conclude bilateral trade agreements between the UK and Portugal. But there are areas where agreements can be reached.
“We are proud of our relationship with Portugal and we are boosting our representation here after many years of cutbacks”, she said.
With regards to tourism, she felt optimistic that tourism from the UK will continue to bloom post-Brexit due to the many qualities Portugal boasts as a tourist destination.
“But Brexit means Brexit and rather than focusing on the past, we should look at the future and remember that the EU is Britain’s largest trading partner.”
She also said that interest from either country to invest remains high and that many companies in Portugal looking to use the UK as a non-EU market to access new markets once Brexit is complete.
Ambassador Hayes concluded that there is clear intention by both countries to continue nurturing the world’s oldest alliance and she has received assurances from either side that the relationship is highly valued.