Swedish border police prepare to deport bedbound British grandmother
Kathleen Poole, who arrived in Sweden 18 years ago, suffers from Alzheimer's and receives around-the-clock treatment in a care home. She has now been ordered to leave Sweden as she lost her right to residence following Brexit.
Kathleen Poole, 74 years old, moved to Sweden 18 years ago to be closer to her son Wayne Poole and his family. For the past ten years, she has been in a care home, receiving treatment for Alzheimer's.
"She has Alzheimer's, she doesn't eat, they feed her, they dress her, she's blind in one eye, she doesn't know who we are, all her care is provided by the staff," Kathleen's daughter-in-law, Angelica Poole told Sveriges Radio (SR).
Wayne and Angelica are now fighting to prevent her deportation.
"I'm going to do everything I can," Angelica told SR. "This situation is just completely unbelievable, you don't ever think you're going to be sitting in this situation."
Despite this, the Migration Agency has ordered Kathleen to leave the country, as she no longer legally has the right to live in Sweden following Brexit.
Kathleen had a personnummer and permanent residency under EU rules, but her British passport expired in 2018, which meant that she could not get post-Brexit residence status when her family applied for it on her behalf once the UK left the EU, local newspaper Bohusläningen were first to report.
The Local asked Swedish Migration Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard in an interview last week whether Kathleen Poole's case could be a sign that the immigration system is not working.
"Well, in general, I think that the system in this regard is working, meaning that we have an independent authority that looks into every specific case individually," she said.
In Sweden, government ministers are not permitted to try and influence the actions of Swedish agencies or authorities, meaning that Malmer Stenergard was unable to provide specific comments on Kathleen Poole's case.
"This is a completely individual decision made by the authorities, and I cannot say anything about the specific case, that would be against the law, in fact."
Data published by the EU statistical office, Eurostat, last month revealed that about 2,205 UK citizens were ordered to leave EU countries between 2020 and September 2022 – with around half of this number from Sweden alone.
“This is actually complete news to me,” Malmer Stenergard said, when The Local asked if she could explain why Sweden's numbers are so high.
“I can’t, at this moment, explain it. But, I promise that I will look into it and get back to you,” she added.
The Local also covered the story of British citizen Gregory last week, who was deported from Sweden to the UK last year because he was not eligible for post-Brexit residency, despite living in Sweden for 21 years and having two children in the country, who are Swedish citizens.
He told us in this article how the decision had affected his mental health, describing Sweden as 'one of the cruellest countries".
Members of the British community in Sweden and in Europe argue that Kathleen Poole's case is yet another example of how vulnerable people are being affected by Brexit.
"This is why UK in EU need the support of an independent organisation, vulnerable individuals are at risk," campaign group British in Europe wrote on Twitter.
“The police are just doing a box-ticking exercise on what she can take with her but nobody is standing up and saying ‘this is preposterous, this should not be happening’,” David Milstead, from the Brits in Sweden Facebook group, told British newspaper The Guardian.
“For all the grand words of the UK and the EU, this is a shocking and egregious case of the misapplication of the withdrawal agreement,” he said.
The withdrawal agreement is the agreement between the UK and the EU written up to protect the rights of Brits in Europe and EU citizens in the UK after Brexit.
Last month, border police visited Kathleen's care home to look through her belongings, asking nurses which furniture and clothing belonged to her. The family still have no idea when Kathleen is likely to be deported.
"The border police said that it doesn't happen in one day, that's the only message I've had, so I don't know if it will be one week or two months," Angelica Poole told SR.
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Kathleen Poole, 74 years old, moved to Sweden 18 years ago to be closer to her son Wayne Poole and his family. For the past ten years, she has been in a care home, receiving treatment for Alzheimer's.
"She has Alzheimer's, she doesn't eat, they feed her, they dress her, she's blind in one eye, she doesn't know who we are, all her care is provided by the staff," Kathleen's daughter-in-law, Angelica Poole told Sveriges Radio (SR).
Wayne and Angelica are now fighting to prevent her deportation.
"I'm going to do everything I can," Angelica told SR. "This situation is just completely unbelievable, you don't ever think you're going to be sitting in this situation."
Despite this, the Migration Agency has ordered Kathleen to leave the country, as she no longer legally has the right to live in Sweden following Brexit.
Kathleen had a personnummer and permanent residency under EU rules, but her British passport expired in 2018, which meant that she could not get post-Brexit residence status when her family applied for it on her behalf once the UK left the EU, local newspaper Bohusläningen were first to report.
The Local asked Swedish Migration Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard in an interview last week whether Kathleen Poole's case could be a sign that the immigration system is not working.
"Well, in general, I think that the system in this regard is working, meaning that we have an independent authority that looks into every specific case individually," she said.
In Sweden, government ministers are not permitted to try and influence the actions of Swedish agencies or authorities, meaning that Malmer Stenergard was unable to provide specific comments on Kathleen Poole's case.
"This is a completely individual decision made by the authorities, and I cannot say anything about the specific case, that would be against the law, in fact."
Data published by the EU statistical office, Eurostat, last month revealed that about 2,205 UK citizens were ordered to leave EU countries between 2020 and September 2022 – with around half of this number from Sweden alone.
“This is actually complete news to me,” Malmer Stenergard said, when The Local asked if she could explain why Sweden's numbers are so high.
“I can’t, at this moment, explain it. But, I promise that I will look into it and get back to you,” she added.
The Local also covered the story of British citizen Gregory last week, who was deported from Sweden to the UK last year because he was not eligible for post-Brexit residency, despite living in Sweden for 21 years and having two children in the country, who are Swedish citizens.
He told us in this article how the decision had affected his mental health, describing Sweden as 'one of the cruellest countries".
Members of the British community in Sweden and in Europe argue that Kathleen Poole's case is yet another example of how vulnerable people are being affected by Brexit.
"This is why UK in EU need the support of an independent organisation, vulnerable individuals are at risk," campaign group British in Europe wrote on Twitter.
“The police are just doing a box-ticking exercise on what she can take with her but nobody is standing up and saying ‘this is preposterous, this should not be happening’,” David Milstead, from the Brits in Sweden Facebook group, told British newspaper The Guardian.
“For all the grand words of the UK and the EU, this is a shocking and egregious case of the misapplication of the withdrawal agreement,” he said.
The withdrawal agreement is the agreement between the UK and the EU written up to protect the rights of Brits in Europe and EU citizens in the UK after Brexit.
Last month, border police visited Kathleen's care home to look through her belongings, asking nurses which furniture and clothing belonged to her. The family still have no idea when Kathleen is likely to be deported.
"The border police said that it doesn't happen in one day, that's the only message I've had, so I don't know if it will be one week or two months," Angelica Poole told SR.
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