[Osem]

I'll give you my wife's perspective on it if you like. She's white and has been a British citizen for quite a few years now but was born in one of the more recent EU entry countries. She's always been conscious of being different especially when she speaks and her accent is evident. In recent years of course accents similar to hers have become far more common but when she first came here she felt a very obvious foreigner as people always commented on her accent and where she came from in one way or another. She has a pragmatic view on the subject as in her home country foreigners/ethnic minorities have traditionally been treated with suspicion and even hatred. I guess it's for this reason that hearing others say that people like her shouldn't be here isn't nice but doesn't bother her unduly. She knows and is proud of her roots, had made her choices and doesn't feel at all apologetic for doing so but does feel very grateful for being given that chance and is proud to be a British citizen.

Although she's felt very aware of her accent she'll tell you that she's never felt the victim of any real discrimination. Quite the reverse in fact, she finds the fact that she's been able to enjoy free educational courses and healthcare in the UK from the day she arrived here quite remarkable. Conversely, she felt very awkward when on my first trip to her country and we booked into a hotel, I was forced to pay a higher rate for my room than she was purely for being foreign! All in all, she's very happy to be here and feels this country has been very kind to her over the years. The fact that so many of her friends have come here and done similar would seem to bear out her experience.