Britain and Sweden should cooperate on Kathleen Poole’s case

The sad story of Kathleen Ball being threatened with deportation in Tannum borough has received attention in Great Britain. MP Hillary Benn called on the European Union and the UK government to get involved.

Kathleen Paul has received a deportation order because she does not have the practical possibility to renew her British passport, a requirement put in place by the Swedish authorities in order for her to be able to obtain a continuous residence permit after Britain leaves the European Union. For several years, she was bedridden at a dementia home in Tanum.

The UK has procedures for how to do this Sick and disabled people are required to have a passport. Routine is also there for people on the outside. The problem is that it’s complicated. As far as can be understood from the British Government website, it is required, among other things, that Two British citizens unrelated to Kathleen Poole vouch for her identity.

So far, the family has not seen any chances of meeting formal requirements in the UK and Sweden for identification. So now all that’s left is a deportation, with no one to benefit. Another negative consequence of Brexit that no one seemed to have foreseen.

There are many questions that the Swedish and British governments must answer. Is Kathleen Paul’s identity and nationality really in dispute? She has a Swedish social security number and receives social benefits from the Swedish social insurance system and the municipality. The embassy advised the family to hire a lawyer and cooperate with the police. But shouldn’t the embassy help the family with advice on how to get a new passport, despite the practical difficulties? How can EU countries and the UK ensure that similar cases do not end up in the same intolerable situation?

With Kathleen Poole so ill, one can at best hope that the police will consider that there are obstacles to application. The effort required from the municipality, health care and transportation companies is likely to be very large and the question is whether they can handle a longer journey. Swedish and British taxpayers’ money could be put to better use. For example, by giving her a peaceful and dignified last time in life surrounded by her loved ones.

Read more:Kathleen is sick and invalid – now she will be deported from Sweden

Read more:It is unreasonable to turn away an old and sick person

Read more:Sick Kathleen is to be deported – the family anxiously await the police to pick her up

Read more:Kathleen, who suffers from dementia, is approaching deportation at Tanum

Read more:British parliamentarian criticizes the deportation of Kathleen Poole, who suffers from dementia

Read more:The whole family is affected when the grandmother is deported