Having recently given interviews to wetheeu.com and to thelocal.at, which will both appear online in due course, one of the questions that seems to have figured in both interviews as well as in conversations about the referendum with friends, both in the UK and Austria, who have been apathetic and asked why I am trying to persuade people to register and vote in the UK’s referendum, particularly given the fact that I am unlikely to return to the UK to live or work. A selection of the reasons I have given are below: Continue reading “Why should an expat vote in the UK’s Referendum?”
Category: Expats
Am I am atypical British Expat in Vienna?
On Saturday I spoke to Rebecca and her husband, who were in Vienna as part of their journey throughout the EU’s 28 Member States – in their wetheeu.com project. On this leg of their trip Vienna was part of their route from Germany through Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria, before heading on to Malta, Sicily, Italy, Croatia and Slovenia. Part of their project in addition to the interviews with British Expats throughout the UK is also to explore parts of the countries they visit – rather than just a pure capital city hop. Continue reading “Am I am atypical British Expat in Vienna?”
wetheeu.com – travelling Europe between now and 23 June
It seems as though my blog has caught a few people’s attention – to date I have just spread it through a few interested friends and notified people through Facebook about my new posts on an as and when basis. Some friends have been kind enough to share posts or have commented and read the blog – I am sure that having chosen my blog to mention that I have a newborn son might have something to do with that though!
Continue reading “wetheeu.com – travelling Europe between now and 23 June”
As we pass through the 100 days to go mark… Taking stock.
Yesterday saw T-100 days until the UK Referendum. For many in the UK, the issue has been getting saturation coverage since the Prime Minister announced the date of the referendum, only just over 3 weeks ago.
Yesterday saw T-100 days until the UK Referendum. For many in the UK, the issue has been getting saturation coverage since the Prime Minister announced the date of the referendum, only just over 3 weeks ago. With the Presidential Election in the US still rumbling on and with nearly another 8 months until the vote there, even the prospect of a referendum a mere three months away seems to be too much for some citizens in the UK. In Austria we have the Presidential election coming up too, however despite not being able to vote in either the referendum in the country of my birth and upbringing, and the country whose citizenship I hold, the whole UK Referendum still captivates me more than the position of President of Austria – a widely ceremonial position. Continue reading “As we pass through the 100 days to go mark… Taking stock.”
Spread the word…
To tie in with vote registration day last month (4 Feb 2016), the consular services at the British Embassy passed on the information below. Its message has proven to be that many people are not aware of their eligibility to vote. Through the website that I help to run (vienna-expats.at) I have passed on the message, as well as sharing the information through various Facebook groups. It seems that as with the Swiss referendum, the key is to increase awareness among eligible voters – the ten pointers below are doing the rounds among expat circles here in Vienna and one of the features of their voter information round robin is the abiding message to spread the word – a sort of electoral evangelism.
A letter to my (still?) MP
In order to try to raise awareness of the Overseas Voter issue, particularly in light of the withdrawing of the Overseas Voters Bill after its second reading in the House of Commons, I contacted the MP of my last constituency, Rebecca Pow, to draw her attention to my plight.
In order to try to raise awareness of the Overseas Voter issue, particularly in light of the withdrawing of the Overseas Voters Bill after its second reading in the House of Commons, I contacted the MP of my last constituency, Rebecca Pow, to draw her attention to my plight. Ms. Pow is currently undecided on whether to back the “In” or “Out” campaign.
The effect of Brexit on the GBP-EUR exchange rate
Having had a foreign currency mortgage, denominated in Swiss Franc, taken out on a property bought in Euro here in Austria, since Swiss Franc mortgages were a popular instrument prior to the Financial Crisis, I’ve seen the destructive effect that a currency devaluation can have for borrowers. The effects of a Brexit could be similar for Brits abroad who are using their Sterling savings to keep afloat in the Euro area. Regardless of whether financing of property is involved, the effects of a Brexit are likely to cause considerable volatility for Sterling.
Continue reading “The effect of Brexit on the GBP-EUR exchange rate”
A ray of (C)hope – Part 2 – The Overseas Voters Bill comes off the rails
Unfortunately the ray of hope about the Overseas Voters Bill has been extinguished. The second reading of the Bill, last Friday morning provided a lively debate – even though MPs strayed in their debating to issues of electoral reform within the UK, rather than sticking strictly to the subject of Overseas Voter registration. Continue reading “A ray of (C)hope – Part 2 – The Overseas Voters Bill comes off the rails”
Metropole on the Brexit
Metropole – the monthly English language magazine for Vienna also runs a blog, and today’s post “Until the Brexit do us Part” featured a couple of my comments to them. There are a number of interesting perspectives – including a fair few from translators – some of whom have a slightly “devil-may-care” approach to paying into pension systems either here in Austria or in the UK.
Continue reading “Metropole on the Brexit”
A letter of note from another UK expat
In response to my post on Vienna Expats’ facebook page about the the 2nd reading of the Private Members Bill on allowing all UK citizens in the EU to vote, regardless of how long they have been outside the UK, there was a comment from another Brit in Vienna, Christian Cummins, with a link to a letter he had submitted to the Guardian – it is worth a read. Continue reading “A letter of note from another UK expat”