How the Brexit vote changed London for Kiwis living there

Following the Brexit vote, London just doesn’t feel the same for some of the 200,000 Kiwis living there.

 

Many New Zealanders are now facing an insecure future with recruitment freezes, rumours of banks moving to Europe, and a damaged currency, after the leap into the unknown that was the EU Referendum.

And as well as the economic implications, the fallout has highlighted how difficult life in the UK can be for those who do not look or sound like a stereotypical Brit.

The number of hate crimes committed in the UK has increased by 500 percent with many people coming forward with instances of racism.

This includes a BBC presenter who says she was called a n****, reports of attacks on Muslims, and targeted hate mail towards Polish people.

Scientific and medical research in the UK is also expected to be set back “decades” from the loss of EU funding and corroboration.

But Australasian Recruitment senior consultant Santhiya Veejian is still optimistic about the future of the London OE.

She says the demand for New Zealand workers in temporary administration and office work is as strong as ever, but any real changes won’t be seen for the next five to ten years.

“The Kiwi and Australian market is untouchable – this doesn’t really affect the Commonwealth.

“The jobs that are affected are not at the level that we do – someone under 30 coming over with just a backpack - it’s more on the higher end of the scale.“

But predictions for the British economy are looking bleak, with the governor of the Bank of England talking of economic post-traumatic stress. Kiwis in London are expected to experience this in contracts cancelled, the loss of existing jobs, and the loss of future jobs.

Pound-earning Kiwis who are planning on returning home will be gutted to see their earnings lose value, but those intending on heading to the UK for a holiday can look forward to getting more for their New Zealand Dollar.

But what exactly the future holds for the New Zealanders who have made a life on a British or European passport is unclear.

This is what five New Zealanders in London have to say about how the vote changed their lives:

Name: Harriet Hamilton

Age: 28

From: Christchurch

Job: Works for the NHS

Time in London: Five years

I did think we might leave the European Union because I think there is a lot of social inequality in Britain. I haven’t really experienced any racism myself but I think there are racist attitudes here, and friends of mine have experienced racism.

An Indian woman was being racially abused in the supermarket by an older man and I stepped in and he told me to get back to my own country.

New Zealanders and Australians are definitely given special treatment as immigrants, and we do get special privileges.

The decision to leave the EU won’t affect me other than socially and culturally. I know people who don’t feel welcome and feel unwanted now in the United Kingdom.

***

Name: Lydia Doczi 

Age: 26

Job: Designer

From: Christchurch

I think the vote to leave the EU has definitely helped to legitimise racism in Britain.

I had never really thought about race until I moved here. It is institutional racism. I feel like I am lucky to be seen as New Zealander in most situations.

People say that I am a "good" immigrant, which is supposed to be a compliment, but it’s racist. A recruiter was once surprised at how good my English was. Another one said to me, "Oh, are you the Eastern European girl?"

Personally, it is going to affect me hugely. My life is in limbo. If I wanted to leave my work in the next two years it would be hard to find another job on a European passport.

I have been so worried about it, but have been thinking how are they going to kick 3 million people out of Britain? They might not be able to, but I think they are going to make it really hard for us to stay here.

If you asked me two weeks ago would I want to stay here, I would have said, of course I would, but now I feel like I need to look somewhere else in Europe to live. I don’t want to live somewhere with open racism.

Diversity and acceptance are part of what makes London cool. It is so multi-cultural. I think it is so scary when it’s not just the UK - far right groups are becoming more popular all over Europe. What is terrifying is that the UK is seen as a beacon of acceptance, so at the moment it feels really regressive.

***

Name: Sophie Fenton

Age: 23

Job: Garment technologist

From: Taupo

Time in London: More than two years

I was planning to get a British passport, I’m on an ancestry visa, and initially I was going to work in the UK for five years and then move to somewhere like Paris or Stockholm or Berlin to further my career.

Now Brexit has happened I’m less inclined to get a passport because I can move to America or Asia for a similar amount of effort.

I have seen a lot of racism at work and in the street. A lot of people in the UK seem to be confused about the difference between refugee seeking asylum and an immigrant, which has influenced people to vote in a certain direction.

A huge part of living in London is the ability to just nip to Paris for the weekend. Now that is likely to become much harder.

***

Name: *Sarah

Age: 25

Job: Graduate computer programmer

From: Auckland

Time in London: Two years

I lost my apprenticeship because of Brexit. We had a verbal agreement for an apprenticeship before the vote, and they got in touch with me on the day after the vote.

They are a big American company, but they didn’t say it was directly because of Brexit, they said it was for financial reasons: suddenly they couldn’t afford to hire anyone else and they were freezing hiring. They were really sorry, but reading between the lines it would have had to do with Brexit.

On the morning I found out about the vote it was very upsetting - I cried. I was also very scared because I heard about the pound dropping and economic fear, and it is predicted there will be a recession. And also secondary was the idea that people have voted based on some xenophobic reasons.

I know relationships which might have to be broken up, and a lot of New Zealanders with British citizenship who are living in other European countries and have made lives there for themselves who will either have to move back to New Zealand or move to Britain.

*Wished to remain anonymous.

***

Name: Sophia Duckor-Jones 

Age: 28

From: Wellington

Job: Freelance journalist

Time in London: Seven months

I was under the impression that Great Britain would choose to remain. Everyone I had spoken to wanted to remain.

I am in the UK on a two-year working visa - I do not have a passport/ancestry visa so it won't affect me as much as other people. However, the pound has already dropped, and the job market will be even tougher so finding work is going to be hard. It also means travelling from the UK to other countries won't be as easy.

I am currently volunteering in Greece working with the refugees. I spent seven months living in London - a very multi-cultural city with a Muslim mayor. I find it very hard to believe that Britons do not understand how much immigrants have contributed to the economy,

I also feel that the Brexit result was a just another slap in the face for refugees in Europe trying to make a new life for themselves.

I also thought that leaving would be a huge risk, and one that people would not want to take.

I fear that those who voted out did not think of the generation that is coming through. The economy will suffer greatly, and once again it will be left up to the younger generation to fix our parents and grandparent's mistakes.