AIBU to think it was unfair that I didn't get a vote (Brexit)

[Nicolamarlow1]

At the time of the referendum my DH and I had lived in France for more than 15 years and therefore we couldn't vote in the referendum (or in any other UK elections come to that). We are now back in the UK. Just because we lived there at the time didn't mean we were there forever. While we were in France we were still British citizens and there must be thousands of expats like us who were denied a vote on Brexit.

I was also out of the country, on business, during the 3 months before and 3 months after the referendum. Why should I have had a say in what happens with the UK?

But you would have had a vote, wouldn’t you? Of course you should have had a say in it if you were only out of the country for 6 months on business.

Penny and bun?

Havent heard of that...whats that mean?

Sometimes people have to work abroad, i really don't understand why they arent allowed a say

You didn’t live here then....

It's perfectly normal for overseas citizens to vote. I have not lived in the US since I was 4 years old, but as a US citizen by birthright, I can vote in Federal and State elections.

Maybe you're right but if were being pedantic....everyone whose lives will be directly affected. I.e EU citizens living in this country and UK citizens living in the rest of the EU.

It was ridiculous that commonwealth citizens got a vote and others didnt.

YANBU but I also think I should have had a vote! As a French national I have been in the UK since 2003. Yet I couldn't vote for the referendum. (But I can vote in every other election).
And yet again my DH who is Indian was allowed to vote (commonwealth...). Go figure the logic of that one!!
My husband's uncle and aunt actually voted leave... a bit of a shame really. They never truly integrated in the UK, most of their lives is truly turned towards India and they wish to go to the US as soon as they can to join their daughter... but they had a vote so they voted...

I've also never had any issue with voting for French election, I have the right to and I exercise that right even though I don't live there.

Erm yes yabu. You didnt live here for over 15 years why should you have a shiny shit of a say what happens here??
You might be back now. But at the time... none of your business.

YANBU, you are a British citizen and therefore should have had a vote. Especially as you were directly benefitting from the EU freedom of movement at the time, so if we hadn’t been in the EU chances are you wouldn’t have been in France.

YABU. You didn’t live here or pay tax here, why should you get a say?

Because people like the OP are disproportionately affected by any decision changing the relationship between the UK and the EU. Surely this is easy to understand?

And why the random 15 year limit? What happens to Brits abroad after 15 years? Do they grow an extra limb or something? Why not 10 years or 12 or 20 or 9 and 3/4?

Penny and bun?
Havent heard of that...whats that mean?

I guess there's really no point in explaining. Most people with a single brain cell can work it out for themselves. It isnt difficult.

Well presumably the majority of people residing at Her Majestys pleasure will also be affected but they aren't allowed a vote either.

penny

Well arent you a sweet heart

Its the name of a pub here

@PennyArcade

Penny and bun?
Havent heard of that...whats that mean?

I guess there's really no point in explaining. Most people with a single brain cell can work it out for themselves. It isnt difficult.

Wow, rude much!

My post about paying UK tax was in response to Penguincake who said, wrongly, that I shouldn't have say in Brexit because I didn't pay UK tax.

Even for the 15 years when you weren't a resident?

@tomtontom if you want a conversation directly with the op then message her. This is a public forum just in case you weren’t aware.

No I don’t know the exact figure of British passport holders and neither do I think it’s relevant to my stance. Leaving the EU is an international matter given the rights it afforded for travel, residency and work within the European Union and therefore anyone with access to those rights at risk of losing them should have had a vote. That doesn’t translate to everyone within the EU getting a vote but those who had a direct interest that would be affected by the outcome. It wouldn’t be hard, well not for a referendum organised with more than a flighty proposal.

Another one here who doesn’t get the penny/bun reference and I love a good proverb

I guess there's really no point in explaining. Most people with a single brain cell can work it out for themselves. It isnt difficult.

Or you could just say you can't have your cake and eat it too, which is a more well known saying!

And 'isnt' has a comma between n and t.

Yabu.

She could easily have paid forty years of tax before that M4J4.

@dantesinferno, pay it no mind, I get the impression that’s pretty much the whole brexit manifesto so it’s just a summary of a lot of issues as far as I can tell.

M4J4, no I wasn't paying UK tax when I lived in France, I was paying French tax. So are you saying that because I didn't pay UK tax while I was in France, that I should have no say in UK affairs? Even though I now live in the UK, I still have the right to vote in French elections as a result of having paid taxes there. So why not in the UK?

I have a PhD and a glittering academic career and I don't get the penny / bun thing either...

YABU. You knew the law when you left and presumably weren’t forced to.

I’m a remainer. There have to be limits to everything.

I do agree that it's unfair in the case of the Referendum. I think that residence requirements are appropriate for general elections; but this was different because people like you are among those most strongly affected. The long-term British residents on the Continent, and the EU citizens in the UK, could have their lives seriously disrupted by Brexit, and therefore should have had a vote!

I’m American but have lived, worked, and paid taxes in the UK for the last 16 years. I can still vote in US elections, but as
I’m not a citizen, I can’t vote here. Arguably Brexit will affect UK citizens who live in the EU more than it will affect me. Damn straight they should have been able to vote. Amazing the US is more liberal than the UK on this.