Unravelling bi-national partnerships: the characteristics of individuals born in the EU living in England & Wales

Abstract

Existing literature has investigated the characteristics of binational partnerships in a small number of European countries, such as Belgium and the Netherlands, but such research has not been replicated in the UK context. Understanding the prevalence and characteristics of binational partnerships is a critical policy issue in the UK context, as the country edges closer to a public referendum on its membership in the European Union. In the event of a so-called ‘Brexit’ the rights and responsibilities of non-UK, European nationals and their families could be significantly affected. Against this context, this paper draws on the 2011 Census for England and Wales in order to investigate the characteristics of non-UK European nationals resident in England and Wales. The preliminary findings show that just over four per cent of individuals living in England and Wales in 2011 are Europe-born nationals, equating to 2.5 million people of whom 2.26 million are aged 18 and over. Of these, almost two-thirds are employed; just over half are single never-married; and approximately half of them have at least one dependent child. About one-thirds of men and one-fifth of women in this group were partnered with a British-born individual. Such findings contribute to our understanding of the current situation of binational partnerships in the UK, which can in turn inform our understanding of their potential situation in the future if a ‘Brexit’ occurs.

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Identifiers

ORCID for Jane C. Falkingham: orcid.org/0000-0002-7135-5875

ORCID for Maria Evandrou: orcid.org/0000-0002-2115-9358

ORCID for Athina Vlachantoni: orcid.org/0000-0003-1539-3057

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