EU nationals applying for UK citizenship jumps by 80% after Brexit
The number of EU nationals applying for British citizenship has nearly doubled in the wake of the Brexit vote, official statistics reveal.
They show the figure jumped by 80% as thousands originally from other countries in the bloc sought naturalisation.
There were 28,502 applications for citizenship from EU nationals in the year ending in June 2017 up from 15,871 in the previous 12 months.
The rise is in contrast to a general downward trend in the overall numbers seeking citizenship, with total applications falling by 8% to 135,912.
Jonathan Portes, professor of economics and public policy at King’s College London, said: Historically immigrants from outside the EU have been much more likely than EU migrants to apply for UK citizenship for example the vast majority of long ...