The last Brits in Strasbourg? What Brexit chaos means for the UK’s MEPs and their staff

Europe Correspondent Jon Stone meets Britain’s politicians packing up their offices at the European parliament in Strasbourg

Stepping down: will they or won’t they return? (AFP/Getty)

For the last time, British MEPs and their staff climbed aboard their specially chartered European Union train in Brussels this week to head to Strasbourg. But, as the UK’s 73 representatives prepared to pack up boxes, offices and flats, there was one question hanging over their “final” European parliament session in the French city: was it really their last visit after all?

With chaos still reigning in Westminster, MEPs could find themselves in Strasbourg – where the European parliament sits once a month – again in April. Or, with a lengthier extension, they could even be fighting for re-election come May. As with most things Brexit, even at this late stage, the future remains unclear.

“I need a sign around my neck that says, ‘I don’t know either’,” says Catherine Bearder, the Lib Dems’ only MEP, standing in her bare office filled with cardboard boxes. A staffer adds: “We’ve had a lot of trolls on Twitter asking us, ‘Have you packed your bags yet?’” The answer is now obvious.