I'm taking no risks: 'm becoming French

I ARRIVED in France aged 24
and have been here for 26 years
and I now consider myself more
Français moyen than expat Brit.
Since 2014, I have been considering
‘going native’ properly, but,
as Britain’s European future
hangs in the balance, I am finally
applying, partly as a kind of longterm
insurance policy.
As a teacher of English for the
Ministry of Defence I am part of
that much maligned species the

fonctionnaire. French nationality
is not actually a prerequisite for
this – thanks to the Maastricht
Treaty all citizens from EU or
EEA states can do it, in principle.
In 1997 I sat and passed the
CAPES teaching exam. After two
years spent in secondary schools,
I successfully applied for a
secondment to the French MoD.
If Britain leaves Europe
though, I am simply wondering
if, as a ‘Brexit’ citizen, I can
keep the job I love?
So, what are my prospects if
Britain leaves the EU?
This very much depends on
any future exit deal negotiated
between Great Britain and its
former EU partners and just how
far Britain goes to sever European
links. Leaving the EU is one
thing, but will Britain also leave
the EEA? Will all treaties to
which Britain was a signatory literally
be ‘ripped up’ overnight?
Will expats living and working
in the EU prior to a future Brexit
retain their existing status?
For the moment, life after
Brexit is the stuff of pure speculation.
Friends and colleagues tell
me not to worry, but I think it is
best to be ‘covered’ for all eventualities.
I have lived in France for
long enough to know that as long
as you have the right paper, you
are covered. In these uncertain
times, a French passport is just
the ticket.
Survival instincts apart, I think
too that after 26 years as a fully
paid-up member of French society,
the time has come to have a
greater say in affairs.
As an EU citizen, I can vote in
mayoral elections, but I would
like my say at national level. “No
taxation without representation,”
as Thomas Paine said – that most
English of French revolutionaries.
I do not need to be French to
pay taxes, but I do need to be
French to vote.
Some friends ask me if I will go
home if there is a Brexit. After 26
years, France is home.