Dual nationals to be denied entry to UK from 25 February unless they have British passport
Dual British nationals have been warned they may be denied boarding a flight, ferry or train to the UK after 25 February unless they carry a valid British passport.The warning by the Home Office comes amid scores of complaints from British people living or travelling abroad who have suddenly found themselves at risk of not being allowed into the UK.The problem has arisen because of a change in border controls on 25 February, when everyone travelling to the UK will need permission to travel, unless they are a British or Irish citizen or are otherwise exempt.Visitors for short stays must apply for an Electronic Travel Authorisation that costs £16.But dual nationals will, for the first time, be obliged to show their British passport to travel to the UK or pay what many believe is a punitive price of £589 for a “certificate of entitlement” to attach to their second nationality passport in order to board a flight, ferry or train.
One British woman living in Germany for years who has dual nationality said she feared her children were going to be affected by the changes, particularly her son who is due to travel to the UK in four weeks’ time.“I’m really annoyed about being treated as Brexit collateral once again with this short-notice, shortsighted, arbitrary change of the rules,” she said.While the government introduced the rules last year, she and many others feel they had not been communicated well to those living abroad and that keeping up two passports for a family is an expensive “luxury” that not everyone can afford.One British woman living in Spain for more than 30 years chose to take out Spanish citizenship because of Brexit and up to now was free to go to and from the UK with her Spanish passport.But Spain requires non-nationals naturalising to renounce their previous nationality and presenting her British passport at the airport will legally risk her Spanish nationality.
She said she is aware that many will argue she should not have renounced her British passport but that this change of rules will apply to many children of British citizens born in Spain who have never held a British passport but whose records will show as dual nationality at border control.“It seems a strange anomaly that while the UK is willing to recognise dual nationality, it refuses to recognise that a valid EU passport held by a UK citizen can give right of entry to the UK,” said Julie, who asked that her real name not be used.Another dual national born and educated in London told how he had booked a flight for a work trip in the last week and has only just discovered he may be stranded.He is British Italian but has never held his own British passport and has freely travelled around for his job on his Italian passport.He is due to fly to New York on Friday with his Italian passport but returns after 25 February and won’t be able to present immigration with an ETA or a British passport.
Asked if he had considered paying £589 for a certificate of entitlement to attach to his Italian passport, he said the weeks-long backlog made it impossible to get hold of before Friday.“I found myself having to travel at short notice and am now facing the idea that I may not be allowed back into the country,” said James, who is travelling to a museum in New York to complete logistics on works of art being lent to a gallery in Europe.A Home Office spokesperson said: “From 25 February 2026, all dual British citizens will need to present either a valid British passport or certificate of entitlement to avoid delays at the border.”They said this was part of a digitisation programme to enable a “seamless travel experience”, while also giving the government “greater power to stop those who pose a threat from setting foot in the country and gives us a fuller picture of immigration”.The EU citizens’ campaign group The 3 million called for a low-cost, one-off travel authorisation similar to one in Canada in place of the £589 certificate currently available.
“The UK already has the technology to do the same, so we urge them to act now to ensure British citizens are not locked out of their own country,” said Monique Hawkins, the head of policy and advocacy at The 3 million.If you are affected by the change and want to share your story, email lisa.ocarroll@theguardian.com
Scottish Labour leader says he doesn’t regret calling for Starmer to quit – UK politics live
Anas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, has said that he had a “reasonable” conversation with Keir Starmer yesterday, despite Sarwar having not retracted his call for the PM to quit.Sarwar said that he stood by what he said when he announced on Monday that he wanted Starmer to stand down.But he also said he was “looking to the future”, implying that he is not actively trying to orchestrate Starmer’s removal now.The news on Monday that Sarwar was going to say Starmer should go prompted intense speculation as to whether cabinet ministers would also declare he no longer had their confidence. But all members of the cabinet did subsequently issue statements backing Starmer, it became obvious that there would be no immediate leadership contest, and on Wednesday Sarwar indicated that he wanted to draw a line under the dispute
Dual nationals to be denied entry to UK from 25 February unless they have British passport
Dual British nationals have been warned they may be denied boarding a flight, ferry or train to the UK after 25 February unless they carry a valid British passport.The warning by the Home Office comes amid scores of complaints from British people living or travelling abroad who have suddenly found themselves at risk of not being allowed into the UK.The problem has arisen because of a change in border controls on 25 February, when everyone travelling to the UK will need permission to travel, unless they are a British or Irish citizen or are otherwise exempt. Visitors for short stays must apply for an Electronic Travel Authorisation that costs £16.But dual nationals will, for the first time, be obliged to show their British passport to travel to the UK or pay what many believe is a punitive price of £589 for a “certificate of entitlement” to attach to their second nationality passport in order to board a flight, ferry or train
Left or right, Keir? Labour factions jostle for influence in post-McSweeney No 10
As the prime minister fought for his political life before Labour MPs at their Monday evening meeting, even hardened sceptics saw a flash of something different in Keir Starmer.Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, said Starmer had been “liberated”. He did not have to spell out who from. His comments came 24 hours after the departure of Starmer’s chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, a man who has shaped Labour’s modern incarnation.McSweeney’s presence loomed the largest over any other in Starmer’s government, and his departure means there are many cabinet ministers, groups and factions of the party who spy an opportunity to define what comes next
Reform UK’s Kent council faces ‘extreme risk’ after passing first budget
Reform UK’s showcase council in Kent faces “extreme risk” and “instability”, opposition politicians have warned, after it passed its first budget.The party’s councillors voted it through on Thursday night after their leaders announced a 3.99% council tax increase, one percentage point under the limit before a referendum is required, despite promising before their election win not to raise tax.While it was described by the council leader, Linden Kemkaran, as a “sensible, low-tax budget,” opposition parties said it left the council’s reserves “dangerously low” and exposed to financial risk totalling more than £410m on the local authority’s risk register.The vote was carried with 48 councillors in favour – the number who are still with Reform after a period of turmoil in which several left Nigel Farage’s bloc on the council – with 26 against and one abstention
Reeves urged to reassure MPs over public finances amid £6bn-a-year Send costs
Rachel Reeves is under pressure to reassure MPs over the state of the UK’s public finances, amid concerns that the rising cost of special educational needs and disabilities (Send) could leave a significant hole in the government’s financial buffer.Meg Hillier, the chair of the all-party House of Commons Treasury committee, said the chancellor should make clear her long-term plans for the £6bn-a-year Send bill as uncertainty grows over how it will be accounted for at the end of the decade.Reeves, who is due to appear before the committee next month, said in a letterto MPs that she plans to delay a decision until next year.City analysts said financial market investors would be concerned if some or all of the £6bn Send annual cost was deducted from the budget surplus, which the chancellor more than doubled in last November’s budget to £22bn to cushion the UK against volatile government bond markets.The spat between MPs and the Treasury comes after the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) said the £6bn Send bill was unaccounted for at the budget and expected increases to the bill over the next decade posed a risk to the public finances
Starmer ousts cabinet secretary in clear-out of top team after Mandelson scandal
Keir Starmer’s attempt to shake up his top team after the disastrous Peter Mandelson scandal began on Thursday, when he forced out his most senior civil servant with a view to replacing him with Antonia Romeo.The prime minister announced that Chris Wormald was stepping down “by mutual consent” after just over a year as cabinet secretary, with Romeo almost certain to succeed him as the first woman in the job.Starmer’s decision to oust Wormald drew ire from senior civil servants over the brutality of the move. One person described the mood as “sulphurous” over the prime minister’s apparent willingness to let senior officials go.The Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch, said the cabinet secretary had become the “latest person Keir Starmer has thrown under the bus to save his own skin”
Jimmy Kimmel on Maga: ‘It’s such a delicate balance between stupid and evil’
Fantastic. Great move. Well done Angus: the story of one of Australia’s favourite political memes
Jimmy Kimmel on Trump: ‘A code orange de-mental emergency going on here right now’
Jon Stewart calls Maga backlash to Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl show ‘actually pathetic’
‘We recorded it in a kitchen!’ How China Crisis made Black Man Ray
Super Bowl: Bad Bunny, the ads and everything but the football – as it happened