E H T S W O N K Y D NOBO Y T N I A T R E C N U COSTA As Brexit questions continue to cause gloom in the UK, we head for sunnier shores to find out what the referendum result means for the thousands of Brits living and working in Spain. By Clare Speak The sun is out and the skies are blue above Benidorm on a Saturday afternoon in November. Crowds spill out onto the pavement at bars and cafés along the promenade, and a group of tanned Brits in t-shirts order tapas from a waiter skilfully balancing trays loaded with sangria. But these particular Brits are no carefree holidaymakers, and the mood around the table is surprisingly serious. Since June, there’s only really been one topic up for discussion among expats in Spain – or Brexpats, as some are now calling themselves. The EU referendum vote has cast a dark
cloud over the Spanish sun for the many thousands of Brits who’ve sold up and started a new life on the Costas. “We’re all gutted. We’re still in shock really,” says Pam, a former nurse who exchanged life in Stockport for Spain when she retired six years ago. “We couldn’t believe it. But what makes it worse is that even now, months later, we’ve got no idea what’s going to happen. We’re in limbo.” This apprehension was partly triggered by remarks from Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy, who said ahead of the vote that that British expats could lose the right to live and work in Spain.
Since then, little else has been said. Rajoy did try to reassure expats after a meeting with Theresa May in October that their rights in Spain won’t change “for now”. Existing EU agreements will remain in place for at least two years while the British government negotiates the terms of Brexit. But this isn’t much comfort for the estimated one million Brits who live in Spain or own second homes here. British pensioners are already feeling the ill effects of the vote. “My husband and I are about 200 euros a month worse off with our pension now because of the exchange rate. That makes a big difference to us,” says Pam. With so many big questions left unanswered, rumours abound. “Brexit is all anyone talks about now and you get people in the pub or online coming out with things they’ve heard somewhere and stating it as fact,” says John, a retired builder from Bolton with countless XMAS ISSUE ONE BIG ISSUE NORTH