Europe | Migration within the EU

Europe’s scapegoat

The EU’s cherished free-movement rights are less secure than they seem

|TARGU LAPUS

THERE is not a lot to do on the outskirts of Targu Lapus, a small town in northern Romania. But Catalin Konolos, a construction worker, is rarely home, so he is making the most of a mid-afternoon game of cards before he returns to Luton, a town north of London, for another spell on the building sites. Mr Konolos and his brother, Viorel, sitting beside him, typically toil for four months at a time in Britain before taking a break at home. They work for other Romanians, and have little interest in integrating. Neither speaks English.

This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Europe’s scapegoat”

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