It has been an incredibly successful year for the Commonwealth Freedom of Movement Organisation, as we have made significant progress in advancing our campaign for freedom of movement between the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. In March, a poll released by the Royal Commonwealth Society revealed that free movement was supported by 58% of the British population, 70% of the Australian population, 75% of the Canadian population and 82% of the New Zealand population. This gave us a tremendous mandate to pursue our objective of achieving free movement between these countries: http://www.cfmo.org/2016/03/poll-indicates-strong-support-for-free.html In May, the Australian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Alexander Downer, pledged his support for free movement between the UK and Australia, stating “Over time we would like to continue to talk to the British Government about arrangements we could make to liberalize movement between Australia and the UK, if not have completely free movement - probably not completely unregulated but to have freer movement of people": http://www.cfmo.org/2016/05/australian-high-commissioner-backs-free.html In June, the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union, which created a tremendous opportunity for us to advance our free movement agenda. This was complimented with both Australia and New Zealand agreeing to negotiate new immigration deals with the United Kingdom once Brexit is instigated in March 2017: http://www.cfmo.org/2016/06/australia-new-zealand-to-negotiate-new.html In August, leading British economist, Andrew Lilico, proposed a “CANZUK” union between Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, advocating the countries to “join together in a close geopolitical alliance based around trade, free movement of persons, mutual defense relationships [and] regulatory convergence”. The CFMO now works closely with Andrew Lilico in formulating efforts to advance the CANZUK ideal: http://www.cfmo.org/2016/08/leading-economist-proposes-canada-uk.html In September, the CFMO was featured in major newspapers and online media, explaining the organisation’s campaign and detailing the success of our online petition, which has received over 171,000 signatures (and continuing to rise): http://www.cfmo.org/2016/09/cfmo-wants-free-movement-between-uk.html September also saw UK Foreign & Commonwealth Secretary, Boris Johnson, and Australian Foreign Minister, Julie Bishop, discuss visa liberalization for Australians and Britons following the UK’s departure from the European Union. Discussing increased visa access for both countries, Julie Bishop stated “should we be in a position to conclude a free-trade agreement after Brexit well then obviously [improved access] can be the subject of a free-trade agreement”: http://www.cfmo.org/2016/09/free-movement-could-be-discussed-at.html In October, New Zealand party leader and Member of Parliament, David Seymour, openly announced his support for free movement between the UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, stating “Brexit provides new options as Britain pivots away from European immigration. Let’s approach Britain with a proposal for a two-way free movement agreement, similar to what we have with Australia": http://www.cfmo.org/2016/10/new-zealand-political-party-proposes.html In November, former Prime Minister of Australia, Tony Abbott, also endorsed freedom of movement between the United Kingdom and Australia in the Spectator Magazine (Australia). Abbott stated “A ‘one page’ deal between the world’s fifth and 12th biggest economies for zero tariffs, full mutual recognition of standards and credentials, and free movement of people to work-but-not-to-bludge would be a rare win for economic common sense”: http://www.cfmo.org/2016/11/former-prime-minister-of-australia.html Finally, December revealed leaked documents from the British government confirming plans to create a “prosperity zone” with Canada, Australia and New Zealand once the United Kingdom leaves the European Union. The likely meaning of this entails free trade agreements between the nations, but also the negotiations of visa liberalization and potentially, freer movement: http://www.cfmo.org/2016/12/government-brexit-plan-includes.html With such incredible support from high profile politicians and the general public, together with extensive media coverage from mainstream newspapers and online outlets, 2016 has been an incredible year for our campaign. Our mission is to achieve significant reform regarding free movement between the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand by 2020, and there is no doubt that with our ongoing success, we are closer than ever before to achieving this goal. If you would like to help our campaign, you can also: Like us on Facebook: Our campaign reaches thousands of people every week from supporters liking and sharing our online content - http://www.facebook.com/CFMO.org Follow us on Twitter: With every follow and retweet, we generate greater publicity for our campaign among government officials and the general public - http://www.twitter.com/theCFMO Donate: Financial donations help us advertise and expand our campaign to new audiences. Donations can be made quickly and easily via our website - http://www.cfmo.org/p/donate.html It only takes a moment to help our campaign through social media and online donations. We appreciate all forms of support, and with your help, we will continue to build on our success in achieving free movement for citizens of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. For more information, please visit our website at: http://www.CFMO.org We wish you all a very happy and prosperous new year. The Commonwealth Freedom of Movement Organisation