Number of Brits seeking German citizenship jumps due to Brexit
More than 1660 people, some of whom are descendents of Jews who fled the Nazis, seek a German passport as Britain leaves the EU
The number of people in Britain seeking to restore their German citizenship has jumped following the UK’s decision to leave the European Union.
A German government response to opposition politicians published on Friday says 1,667 people applied to Germany’s embassy in London last year to reclaim the citizenship they or their ancestors were stripped of by the Nazis.
The government’s reply to the Free Democratic Party query notes that the embassy recorded 684 such requests the previous year, most of them following the Brexit referendum in June 2016.
Tens of thousands of Germans, many of them Jewish, fled to Britain after the Nazis took power in 1933.
The figures, which do not include Britons without previous ties to Germany applying for citizenship, were first reported by Germany’s Funke media group.
This comes after Rabbi Baroness Julia Neuberger revealed she was applying for German citizenship after Brexit.
The peer, who resigned the Liberal Democrat whip in 2011, spoke about the move which is available to her due to her mother who escaped Nazi Germany. She made her remarks at the Bank of England’s ‘One Bank Flagship Seminar’ in June.
In September 2017, Jewish News reported on a British woman, Veronica Maguire, 64, who has been living in Germany for 43 years, who has offered to help to British Jews apply for German citizenship after watching a “very moving” BBC documentary showing British Jews applying for German passports in the wake of the Brexit referendum.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
