Brussels warns Sajid Javid of 'concerns' with Brexit EU citizens register hours after his appointment

New home secretary immediately contacted by MEPs worried about Windrush

Theresa May’s new home secretary has been warned of potential problems with the Home Office’s system to register EU citizens just hours after starting his new job.

Senior figures from the European Parliament marked Sajid Javid’s first day by sending him a joint letter laying out their concerns – and warning that the Windrush scandal must not be repeated for European nationals caught up in Brexit.

The letter comes a day after Mr Javid’s predecessor Amber Rudd resigned in the furore over deportation targets that followed the Windrush scandal, which was branded “deeply worrying” in the EU capital.

​MEPs from the five committees of the European Parliament overseeing citizens’ rights, as well as the Brexit steering group and its coordinator Guy Verhofstadt, have now written to Mr Javid to say that vulnerable EU citizens living in the UK need to be better protected in the Brexit process.

Raising seven specific issues, the letter says all EU nationals should be able to register through a simple process of scanning their IDs, to minimise the hassle families will have to go through because of Britain’s departure from the EU.

Such a system is currently only available to users of Android smartphones, and Home Office officials faced ridicule last week after one reportedly suggested EU citizens could borrow another person’s phone.

In the letter, the MEPs also say families should only have to submit one application for “settled status”, rather than separate ones for all their members, and that there need to be alternatives in place for people who cannot use smartphones or computers. The MEPs also warn that EU data protection rules need to be followed during the process, even after the UK has left.

The letter comes after a visit to Brussels by Home Office officials last week, who tried to assuage MEPs’ concerns about the registration system.

The Brexit coordinator Mr Verhofstadt said: “In a spirit of collaboration, MEPs have today set out a number of proposals in order to ensure the registration of EU citizens in the UK is dealt with in an efficient, flexible, timely and sensitive manner. In light of the Windrush scandal and given the large numbers of citizens affected, both the EU and the UK must work together to get this right.

“It is important that the registration process should, as a matter of principle, be cost-free for applicants. It is unacceptable that citizens who were never consulted on Brexit should have to pay large fees to retain their own rights.

European Parliament Brexit co-ordinator Guy Verhofstadt (PA)

“The registration system must be responsive, proportionate and cater for vulnerable groups and those who do not use digital devices.

“We look forward to knowing more about how the independent authority overseeing the system will operate, what its competence will be and how its independence will be ensured.

“It remains a priority for the European Parliament to ensure that citizens, whether the UK citizens in the EU or EU citizens in the UK, can continue to lead their lives as they do now.”

Following the meeting with officials last week, a UK government spokesperson said: “We are developing from scratch a new digital, streamlined, user-friendly scheme for EU citizens to safeguard their right to stay in the UK after we leave the EU.

“Technology will play an important role in making applications simple but this is only part of the process for those who choose to use it and there will be alternative non-digital routes available to all applicants to prove their identity.

“Our voluntary settled status scheme will be opening later this year and we continue to closely engage with technology companies, as well as other stakeholders about its design.”