On the other hand, once Britain is out, will it, if it so desires, be able to swat any Maltese claims on it away like it would a mosquito?

The economies and socities are intertwined, yes. That is why the Brexit vote is not just the UK’a concern. If nothing will change, what was the point if the referendum?

“Brits in Europe” includes the entire population of UK citizens who live in the UK itself.

UK citizens living elsewhere in the EU enjoy EU citizenship because the UK is still part of the EU, and not because they reside in another EU member state.

Please. The UK is pulling out of the EU. So obviously, things are going to be very different. Your “17 million ordinary people” voted for precisely that.

I merely used the French as an example – to illustrate the fact that things won’t change, the economies and societies are far too intertwined. There are hundreds of thousands of EU citizens in the UK. No one really wants to see that change – and it won’t change.

It’s irrelevant whether the UK has “no desire” to see French citizens leave London. The EU operates as a whole: that’s the point of it. The UK will not be permitted to give favourable treatment to French citizens. This is the bit which, apparently, you don’t get.

And don’t forget the 400,000 French citizens living and working in London (there are so many that they return 2 MPs to the French parliament). The UK has no desire to see them leave – just think of the loss to London that would be and the incredible strain on France if they all pitched up in Calais. The economies and societies are far too intertwined for there to be any real change.