The government has betrayed EU citizens – now a no-deal Brexit will make it worse

Editorial: Britain is letting these people down and wasting the opportunity to retain their loyalty. Now a far bigger conflict with other European countries could await the UK

Sometimes political disasters arrive out of a clear blue sky. For those, politicians might deserve a degree of sympathy as they deal with the consequences. By contrast, other catastrophes are so well-telegraphed and can be observed approaching from such a distance, the klaxon sound of warnings deadening the ears, that only the most insensitive or incompetent, or both, of politicians could fail to see the danger.

Such a figure is our new-ish home secretary, Priti Patel, whose first act in office was to airily declare that freedom of movement for EU citizens would end on 31 October – a policy so unworkable that she had to execute a U-turn on it a fortnight later. It was not a helpful episode, and the system remains confused, and especially so if the no-deal scenario actually does transpire, either on 31 October or later.

The latest warnings about this absurd state of affairs emanate from the European parliament. Using a politically charged phrase that must have been deliberately chosen, MEPs from across the political spectrum say that the British government’s various announcements about future migration rules “may exacerbate the hostile environment” towards EU citizens resident in the UK, “as well as impacting negatively on their ability to enforce their rights”.