What are your thoughts? - Brit denied French Nationality (citizenship)

Sorry for sounding flippant. I just googled her. Terrible.
I wasn’t in the UK nor reading much UK news around that time and I don’t think I was aware of it.
Not sure what the reference is to the media, Wikipedia didn’t really explain that.

Milly Dowler was a young girl [13] abducted and murdered in 2002.

The case of The News of The World hacking into this poor girl’s phone and other phone hackings viz

*The scandal deepened when the paper was alleged to have hacked into the phones of families of British service personnel killed in action.

was so appalling it resulted in the closure of the newspaper, a wretched, muck-raking rag at the best of times.

In a photograph of her playing the saxaphone Milly Dowler looked so like my god-daughter that I can’t forget her and her dreadful fate.

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Apologies for misattribution, Paul.

Thank goodness that the NotW’s appalling m.o. was finally ended.

I’ll elaborate on why I mentioned Harry Wales. In reporting the decision of Sussex to, in essence, resign from The Firm, BBC correspondent Johnny Diamond used the phrase “He still hates us” [the media] two or three times in 2-3 minutes. I’m sure he does because I’m sure he holds the media responsible for the death of his mother.

And, albeit I am absolutely nobody but some plain vanilla Brit who sees stuff on telly, so do I and I predicted it based on what I saw.

My opinion was shared by a journalist on The Independent. Others may have come to the same conclusion but I never saw evidence of this before Diana died.

This woman spent a day with one of the paps, chasing Diana round London in a pack of cars. At one point, Diana ran a red light to try to get clear of them. I will never forget the reporter’s concluding sentence, “If it goes on like this, someone is going to get hurt.”

For myself, I came to that conclusion from my observation of her getting into a car. She did not put on her seat belt. She showed no sign of it crossing her mind to do so. Obligatory wearing of seat belts had been the law for long enough by then for it to be instinctive for most people and perhaps, like me, feeling odd if not belting up, for some reason, and scratching around putting it on after driving off.

I remember thinking, "She never wears a belt. Her body language shows she never thinks of it. The way she tries to outrun the paps, that could lead to trouble. "

The only person to survive the crash in the Alma tunnel was her minder, the only one wearing a seat belt.

Major Wales is clearly of the mind that, if he can avoid it, his wife is not going to be subject to her “private life and photograph [being] all over social media and the press without them agreeing to it”.

I believe he’s made a mistake. The Firm does make deals with the media to limit the exposure. A single photographer commissioned to shoot special events/occasions and the results available to all. A set-up photoshoot of, say, the skiing holiday - now leave them alone …

They’re on their own now. They’ve run but there’s no hiding from the monster.

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Can’t he not just marrie his girlfriend instead and the wait 5 years and get it that way

yep, 4 years in fact. But is there something we don’t know and he could only marry his girlfriend:
a. if she agrees (sorry but couldn’t resist that one!) and is free to do so
b. he is free to do so (everything’s sorted and settled legally from his previous marriage)

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Shoot them :grin:

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You have the right man here. In the depths of the British Ministry of Defence is the record of my achievements as a cadet soldier. Amongst these is my certification as ‘Marksman’.

But having dealt with the ‘chorITso’ crims I would, in fairness, have to shoot myself.

When the estate agent asked me the name of the street outside my bedrooms I said “El editor CabrerITso”. Mortified, I apologized for breaking into Italian.

Jane, do you really mean Freedom of Movement, or are you talking about Right to Reside?

None of us Brits resident in EU27 states will be getting Freedom of Movement, the EU refused to grant us that.

As regards the example in the OP, does this person have his French tax retuns, attestation for being in the social security system etc…? All required for a CdS.

For French nationality proof of language competancy (except for the retired) knowledge of the cultural and political norms (we all know Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite but who knows the 4th?)

France is being very tough on Brits wanting to reside here post-Brexit. They have gone from no requirement to register to a full constitutive process, that is a hostile environment.

It fall s short of what is happening in the UK. but it is not being friendly to Brits who have lived here for decades, let alone those who have property and/or a business in France but do not reside in France.

Actually, Grahame… France is being tough on all and any folk who are asking for Nationality … … regardless …

For Brits, France is making allowances to make things easier for CdSejour… and CdResidence Permanent … and I reckon that is fair enough.

And there was me thinkig that ending freedom of movement was dear to the hearts of leavers, and it was the UK that categorically refused any continuation of FoM.

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Sauce for goose etc etc

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Same probably for French & other Europeans in the UK. As Véro says, “What’s good for the goose”.

It fall s short of what is happening in the UK. but it is not being friendly to Brits who have lived here for decades, let alone those who have property and/or a business in France but do not reside in France.

I think you’ll find France is one of the friendlier & has pragmatic views of Brits in divers situations & is really trying to do something positive for you. & cutting so much French red tape for the Brits, I can’t believe it.

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absolute tosh!

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@anon65742194
Now, unless my memory is playing me false (sometimes it does but I don’t think it is this time - maybe someone else can confirm?), at the very start of the negotiations our revered Mr Mince Davis, on behalf of the UK, argued hard for the cut-off date for residency rights to be the date Article 50 was triggered, ie a retrospective cut off date by the time discussions had started. That’s how keen the UK was to put a stop to freedom of movement.
I for one am grateful that the EU took a stand and insisted that citizens shouldn’t be used as pawns and the UK and EU had a responsibility to minimise disruption to their lives.

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I’ve decided today that my first and only concern post-Brexit will be for France and the French, where and amongst whom we have chosen to make our home.

That concern will embrace, for what it’s worth, those French people (and other European citizens) who have moved to England to work, to study, or just because they chose to make it their safe abode, and perhaps raise their children. But especially the French, who have made us, and all of you on SF too I think, so welcome here.

That decision will from now on direct my efforts to protect them, and promote their interests. And I shall use my pen where possible to let people in UK know where I/we stand in this situation, and shall offer my practical help where I can.

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The Connexion article gives a bit of a clue as to why he was refused, clearly supporting five children and two adults requires a decent level of income which he simply he didn’t have.

With 5 children he would already be receiving a good amount of money from the CAF,
They don’t want people who are poor getting nationality as once they get to pension age they get a automatic minimum pension, I think it was 803 euro but may be more now.
If you work here 10 or 20 years but don’t have nationality you get pennies, even the French Artisans say you can never retire.

“They don’t want people who are poor getting nationality”

They simply set a standard for applicants to meet… :roll_eyes: seems reasonable

“If you work here 10 or 20 years but don’t have nationality you get pennies, even the French Artisans say you can never retire.”

Could be why Pension Reforms are being discussed/debated… :thinking:

I hope you are tucking a sum away for your retirement…