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It has left UK taxpayers having to pay more than 130million for their unpaid debts according to a fresh analysis of Student Loans Company figures

ONE INfour EU citizens who study in England go home without paying a penny of their loans, the Sun can reveal.

It has left UK taxpayers picking up a bill of more than 400million for their unpaid debts.

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MPs said it exposed one of the many hidden costs of EU membership and demanded Theresa May use Brexit to stop taxpayers being ripped off.

Students from across Europe who choose to attend English universities get access to the same taxpayer-funded loan as British citizens.

But analysis of figures from the Student Loans Company reveal 18,600 have not paid back a penny and authorities cannot track them because they have returned overseas.

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The 25 per cent of EU graduates who fail to repay loans compares to an overall rate of just 2 per cent.

Furious Tory MPs have demanded Theresa May recoup the money owed by EU graduates in Brexit negotiations.

Jacob Rees-Mogg said there was no reason for EU students to be subsidised by UK taxpayers.

And Philip Davies told The Sun: This is an absolute scandal and shows the huge hidden cost of our membership of the EU to go on top of our 10billion a year membership fee.

Now we are leaving the EU the Government needs to ensure that we stop taxpayers being ripped off in this way.

The number of EU graduates placed in arrears for failing to repay loans reached 8,600 last year. A further 10,000 are not repaying because they are unknown to UK authorities.

Nick Hillman, director of the Higher Education Policy Institute, said EU students who default on their student loans should be stopped at the border and treated in the same way as benefit cheats and tax evaders.

He called on ministers to include measures in the Higher Education Bill to introduce an online repayment scheme to make it easier for graduates to settle their debts. He said the Treasury could save 22 for every 1 spent if ministers copy a scheme brought in by New Zealand.

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Mr Hillman told The Sun: Tackling it is not rocket science. We should copy New Zealand, which has introduced carrots and sticks to raise repayment rates.

If you enter New Zealand owing money, you can be arrested at the border. They also have easy online repayment systems and hardship provisions for those who really cannot afford it.

He added: If Ministers are not prepared to amend the Higher Education Bill currently in the House of Lords, then Philip Hammond must tackle the issue in his next Budget. For every 1 spent chasing repayments from people overseas, he could get 22 in repayments.

That is an exceptionally high rate of return, much higher than other government policies.

David Kurten, Ukip's Education Spokesman,said: The scandal of EU students taking student loans from the British taxpayer and returning home without paying has gone on for years."

He added: "The scale of this scandal has now been revealed at over 400 million.

"Ukip have been saying for years that all students who are foreign nationals, including those from the EU, should pay their own University fees up front if they are studying in Britain. This is simple common sense.

"This is money which should all have been recovered, and could have paid for 15 brand new secondary schools.

"There is no excuse for this waste to continue: British money should be spent first on British people and services in this country, particularly in skills training for young people which has been neglected for far too long."

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One in four European Union citizens who study in England go home without paying a PENNY of their student loans - The Sun

Four Central European nations have hammered out proposals for the European Union that are intended to strengthen the voice of member nations and avoid divisions, Poland's prime minister said Thursday.

Beata Szydlo spoke following a meeting with her counterparts from the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary.

The meeting was held days ahead of the March 9-10 EU summit in Brussels and a special March 25 anniversary summit in Rome. A key issue at these meetings will be the future standing of the currently 28-member bloc after Britain leaves.

Szydlo said that the joint declaration of the so-called Visegrad Group for a "better Europe" was agreed on Thursday and will be presented in Rome.

It calls for EU institutions to take care of issues directly concerning Europeans, like security, protected borders, dignity, justice and equal treatment for each of the member states, Szydlo told a news conference.

One "serious problem" cited by the group was the lack of uniform food standards throughout the EU, which some central European members say means they receive inferior food.

"We believe there is a double standard on the European Union market," said Hungary's Viktor Orban.

"We have to avoid ... having Europe use our countries and markets as a garbage dump," Orban said.

The group appealed to EU officials to take a "serious approach" to the issue.

The declaration also calls for a strong EU market with no protectionism or divisions and for greater control by member nations over the legislative and decision-making processes. The group, which joined the club in 2004, says that EU decisions are made in Brussels by politicians who do not seek the opinions of the member nations.

Szydlo's talks with Orban, Slovakia's Robert Fico and Bohuslav Sobotka of the Czech Republic were also believed to have included the Polish government's opposition to a second term for Donald Tusk, a former Polish prime minister, as European Council head.

Tusk's 2 ?-year term ends in May. He is the only candidate for the position and enjoys general support, but is the long-time political rival in Poland of the leader of Poland's ruling conservative party.

This story has been corrected to show Orban's first name is spelled Viktor, not Victor; and to show the declaration is for a "better Europe" not "better union."

Pablo Gorondi in Budapest contributed to this report

See more here:
Central European nations present plan for stronger EU - ABC News

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EU judges have thrown out a case brought by three asylum seekers challenging the legality of the EU-Turkey migrant deal by claiming Brussels was not responsible for the agreement.

Judges blamed inaccuracies in the press release about the deal which indicated the EU, rather than member states, had reached the agreement.

The General Court of the European Union said it lacked the jurisdiction to hear the case which saw Turkey agree to help EU member states tackle the migrant crisis in March 2016 after more than a million people arrived in Europe.

The evidence provided by the European Council shows that it was not the EU but its member states, as actors under international law, that conducted negotiations with Turkey in that area

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Under the deal, which saw the EU agree to hand over at least 5billion to Turkey to help them stop the crisis escalating, migrants crossing from Turkey to the Greek islands could be deported to back to Turkey.

Two Pakistani nationals and an Afghan national submitted applications for asylum after travelling from Turkey to Greece.

The nationals questioned the legality of the agreement and called for the court to annul the deal between the European Council and Turkey.

But judges threw out the case saying the deal was made between heads of EU member states and the Turkish government under international law and not by the European Council or any EU institutions sparking outrage.

In a statement, the court said: The Court takes the view that the evidence, provided by the European Council and relating to the meetings on the migration crisis held successively in 2015 and 2016 between the Heads of State or Government of the member states and their Turkish counterpart, shows that it was not the EU but its member states, as actors under international law, that conducted negotiations with Turkey in that area, including on 18 March 2016.

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Ankara agreed to the deal in exchange for billions of pounds in funding to help migrants, the promise of visa-free travel for its citizens to much of the EU, and accelerated EU membership talks.

Amnesty International criticised the decision, accusing the EU of sidestepping scrutiny.

John Dalhuisen, Amnesty Internationals Director for Europe and Central Asia, said: There is something very wrong when EU leaders negotiate a deal at an EU summit, publicise it as an EU deal and use EU resources to implement it, but then claim it has nothing to do with the EU in order to avoid judicial scrutiny.

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Migrants try to reach a rescue craft from their overcrowded raft, as lifeguards from the Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms rescue all 112 on aboard

The deceit involved in the EU-Turkey deal just keeps growing: first EU leaders pretend that Turkey is a safe country to return refugees to, then they wash their hands of all involvement when this deeply flawed deal comes under the microscope.

Shifting the blame will not change the fact that this deal has brought suffering to thousands of refugees and migrants, and there is an urgent need for it to be reviewed.

Continued here:
Bungling EU says it NEVER made a migrant deal with Turkey as court rejects asylum bid - Express.co.uk

The Front National leader is surging in the polls and a win would signal the end of Europe, Enrico Letta claimed yesterday.

He said the upcoming French election was even more important than the upcoming federal and presidential votes in Germany due to the formers place at the UN Security Council.

Mr Letta said: You would have the end of Europe. I think the European Union cant survive with Marine Le Pen in the European Council representing France. It will be game over.

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It comes after Marine Le Pen took a huge leap in polls, with 27 per cent of voters saying they now intend to vote for her in the first round of voting in April.

READ MORE: Will Marine Le Pen win the French presidential election?

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She has gained two per cent in the Le Figaro/LCI poll while her closest rival, centrist Emmanuel Macron, is currently garnering 25 per cent of the publics support.

However, Mr Macron, leader of 'En Marche!' is on Ms Le Pens heels as he gained four per cent of the first round vote, the poll found.

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Described as more democratic and republican than her nationalist father, she has led a movement of "de-demonization of the Front National" to detoxify it and soften its image

Of the voters who said they would be gunning for Marine Le Pen, 78 per cent said they definitely would, meaning her supporters are the most confident about who they will vote for, compared to 58 per cent for Republican Franois Fillon and 54 per cent for Mr Macron.

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However, polls are still pointing to an overall win by Mr Macron, who is polling at 58 per cent compared to 42 per cent for Ms Le Pen if the pair were up against each other in the final round.

A third of voters who took part in the survey said they still had not decided who to vote for, meaning there could still be a surprise result.

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Le Pen victory will DESTROY European Union, warns Enrico Letta ... - Express.co.uk

EU citizens living in the UK have expressed panic and confusion after it was alleged that Government regulations will allow the Home Office to remove some of them from the country if they do not have a comprehensive sickness insurance (CSI).

Abriefingpublished by a barrister specialising in immigration law claims that the Home Office acquired controversial new enforcement powers against EU citizens from 1 February.

It warns those EU citizens who are not considered to have a right of residence, including some students and spouses of UK citizens, and who do not have CSI, could be deported or refused entry back into the UK if they leave.The majority of EU nationals living in the UK are entitled to use the NHS, meaning many do not have the insurance.

The Home Office has said this interpretation of their guidance is incorrect, and that the regulations are not new, nor will the Government remove EU citizens from the country if they do not have CSI.

A Home Office spokesperson told The Independent: It is completely wrong to say that we have new powers to deport EU citizens without comprehensive sickness insurance. EU citizens will not be removed from the UK or refused entry solely because they do not have this insurance.

"Their right to remain will remain unchanged while we are a member of the European Union and they do not need any additional documents to prove their status.

But the briefing, published on the website 'Free Movement' which offers updates and advice on UK immigration and asylum law, nonetheless provoked a wave of panic from European nationals residing in the UK. Dozens of people posted comments on a link to the article shared on a Facebook page for the campaign group the3million.

Im scared, one person said simply, while another expressed confusion, saying: It raises more questions than answers.

Among those expressing concern were a number of European mature students studying in the UK, as well as spouses of British citizens who are not in work all of whom are at risk of being removed from the country under the new regulations.

Speaking to The Independent, Sylvia Gawron, a Polish national who studied at Dundee University and has just finished a PhD, said: Throughout my time as a student I was not aware of the requirement for CSI. I've just been told to go and register with the nearest GP by the university.

Despite having completed my undergraduate and PhD studies in Scotland, I won't have any rights to stay in the country and pay my 'debt' in taxes to the British society for allowing me to gain my education here.

I feel like EU citizens are now treated as a second class citizens nobody cares about our rights, our families and those who depend on us. We have been left in limbo wondering what is going to happen to our futures here.

And Andrea Blendl, a German PhD student in Scotland, said: Reading through the briefing document this morning was a huge shock. I have no CSI, so the Home Office would consider me not to have a right of residence.

I was never made aware of the CSI requirement and my university could not give me any guidance, either.

According to the briefing document, if I leave and re-enter the UK, I might commit a criminal offence against the Immigration Act.

This issue is particularly concerning for me, as I am supposed to travel to Sweden for a workshop on Wednesday and obviously dont want to commit a crime upon my return to the UK. I find this situation very scary.

The barrister who wrote the briefing, Colin Yeo of Garden Court Chambers in London, said he believed the changes would not have as serious an impact as feared, but that the Home Office was being careless and wascausing unnecessary panic to EU citizens.

He told The Independent: According to the regulations, if you are perfectly self-sufficient in the UK and youre not claiming benefits or anything like that, but you dont have comprehensive sickness insurance, you dont have a right of residence and therefore you could be removed.

I dont actually think the Home Office is going to enforce this against say, the French wife of a British citizen. I think theyre using it against people they dont like, like Polish rough sleepers.

Guy Verhofstadt says hes received thousands of letters from Brits wanting to remain EU citizens

The position of a Polish homeless person who hasnt committed any criminal offences or claimed public funds is exactly the same as the wife of a British banker but doesnt have CSI, according to the regulations. Theyre both equally removable as far as the Home Office is concerned.

I think theyve drawn it up without really realising the power theyve granted themselves and the way that its going to make people feel, because this is going to make people feel very insecure.

Nicolas Hatton, founder of the3million which demands that the Government guarantee the rights of EU nationals in the UK post-Brexit told The Independent the unannounced changes and the wave of anxiety that had followed was a dangerous sign about the Government's approach to the rights of EU citizens.

The recent changes that have been highlighted are a sign of the continued bureaucracy surrounding EU citizens rights in the UK with the approach of Brexit, Mr Hatton said.

Were not seeing a change in strategy or in the Home Offices approach. The changes to regulations on 1 February fit into the same vein as what has happened in the last seven years. Its very dangerous.

The anxiety levels among EU citizens are really high. Its been going on for too long. Some people are really struggling to cope with the situation. Thats why the reaction to these changes is so strong. People have been living through this for eight months now.

Theresa May has got no credibility among EU citizens, because shes using us as bargaining chips and shes not considering the human life behind the numbers. Shes just seeing three million people as one big number with which she can negotiate Brexit.

When contacted by The Independent, theHome Officesaid it would be "securing the status" of EU nationals in the UK "as a priority".

European citizens resident in the UK make a vital contribution both to our economy and our society. That's why we will be making securing their status, as well as that of British nationals in the EU, a priority as soon as we trigger Article 50 and the negotiations begin," saidaspokesperson.

It comes amid reports that Ms May is to end rights given to EU nationals under freedom of movement rules when she triggers Article 50 next month, which would establish a cut-off date of around 15 March after which EU citizens would not be entitled to live in the UK permanently.

It is unclear if the Governments plan would be a breach of the EU treaties that guarantee freedom of movement.

Under the plan, the 3.6 million EU citizens who are already in Britain and others who come before that date would have their rights protected providing the EU agreed to the same status for UK citizens living in the EU.

Read more:
Brexit: EU nationals express panic after Government 'alters residency rules' - The Independent