Stephen Fry says his Austrian citizenship is partly a “finger up to Brexit” as he hit out at the decision to exit the customs union.
In 2019, the Austrian parliament made it possible for descendants of Austrians who fled the country under Nazi rule to apply for citizenship.
QI star Fry, 67, dubbed the move a “noble gesture” and revealed in a video on social media he had obtained citizenship because he had grandparents from Austria and his great-grandparents died in the Holocaust.
“I am so proud to be Austrian”, he said, addressing the change in law which allows him to vote in the recent parliamentary election.
The actor said that becoming an EU citizen enabled him to “stick his tongue out at Brexit” in an interview with the European press, a sentiment he echoed during a recent interview with Andrew Marr.
He also took aim at the Labour government for what he described as a “disappointing” first 100 days in office.
Fry said they should have learned from the lessons of the previous administrations, saying:
“Look at what happened with Boris [Johnson] and everyone else, the Spads, the Special Advisors, the Civil Service, Dominic Cummings, all these people. Look at the infighting. Look at even with the previous Labour governments. Look at the bad blood between [Tony] Blair and [Gordon] Brown towards the end and so on. Let’s make sure the first thing we do, even before policy is process.
“That’s what Blair always used to say. And so, let’s make the process clear and transparent and honest and friendly and efficient.’
“And instead, they do the opposite. I mean, what is it? Is it just plain human susceptibility to whatever it is that power does to people?”
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