Flynn backs rights of non-EU spouses

Non-EU spouses and their families will be allowed to join their working EU partners anywhere in the Union and enjoy full welfare rights, if controversial proposals agreed by the European Commission yesterday are backed by ministers.

The directive, proposed by the Social Affairs Commissioner, Mr Padraig Flynn, as part of an extension and reaffirmation of the Union's basic free movement rights, has already caused waves in the Commission. Unusually, it has been the subject of three consecutive Commission meetings at which Mr Flynn was repeatedly urged to dilute the proposals and some commissioners warned that the measure was likely to prove electorally damaging. Yesterday, however, the proposals were approved without a vote. Sources in the Commission say that privately Mr Flynn has described the response of some as "verging on racism". The directive would allow workers who move from one EU member-state to another to bring to bring their spouses, children, spouses' parents and dependent relatives with them. That would mean a family which had a dependent disabled brother or an elderly aunt would not have to face the prospect of splitting up if offered work, Mr Flynn said yesterday.

Non-EU spouses would also get the right to seek employment after three years' EU residence if subsequently divorced. The directive would allow rights of residence in any of the member-states to be extended from workers to job-seekers and trainees, and it incorporates recent free movement case law from the European Court of Justice.

Mr Flynn said the move was needed to encourage mobility of labour, currently running at only 0.2 per cent between states. The numbers actually likely to be affected by the directive is minute.