LONDON _ U.K. Conservative Party leadership candidate Michael Gove has pledged to offer British citizenship to the 3 million European Union nationals currently living in the U.K. if he becomes prime minister.
It is an effort by the environment secretary to position himself as a conciliatory figure in the contest to succeed Theresa May, who announced last week that she will step down as Conservative leader next month.
The status of EU nationals living in the U.K. after Brexit has been a contentious issue throughout the negotiations, with May reluctant to make commitments without reciprocal guarantees from the EU about British citizens living there. Gove is pledging to waive fees of more than 1,200 pounds ($1,500) for EU citizens who want to take British citizenship. He will also propose removing some bureaucratic hurdles.
"Michael Gove is ready to unite the country," a campaign spokesman said. "Guaranteeing the rights of EU nationals here in the U.K. through a declaratory scheme, and making a generous offer of citizenship to those lawfully here at the time of the referendum, is a first step in that direction."
Gove was a leading figure in the 2016 campaign to get Britain out of the EU, which focused on levels of immigration. He argued during that campaign that Britain's health service risked being overwhelmed by EU migrants.
