The impact of intersecting crises on recent intra-EU mobilities: The case of Spaniards in the UK and Germany

Abstract

This article contributes to two interconnected fields of study: recent literature on intra-EU migration, specifically South–North flows; and scholarship into the impact of intersecting crises on (im)mobilities. Interest in intra-EU mobilities has increased with the expansion of the EU and especially since the 2008 Great Recession, with a focus mostly on young people and East–West flows. However, based on a mixed-methods research approach, this article looks at the recent migration of individuals and families from Spain to the UK and Germany, two of the main destinations in Europe. It explores the impacts on (im)mobility strategies of three intersecting “crises”: starting with emigration since 2008, including the erosion of EU mobile citizens' rights culminating in “Brexit,” and ending with the effects of COVID-19. Our analysis situates these migrant experiences in the interplay between core-periphery theories and the concept of liquid migration, highlighting how crises accentuate vulnerabilities but can also generate opportunities.