CONFIDENTIAL
!
THE PROPOSED SCHEME
PROPOSED INTERIM CHANGES
1. Subject to negotiations with the East African Governments it is envisaged
that the Government may wish to make an announcement just before or during
the Second Reading of the Immigration Bill stating:-
(i) that it proposes to increase the number of special vouchers
available for United Kingdom Passport Holders.
(ii) that it proposes to reduce the number of Commonwealth Citizens
admitted with employment vouchers from about 4,000 to about
2,000 a year.
(iii) that it proposes also to effect some reduction in the rate of
alien immigration.
2.
The
These interim changes would be made within the framework of the Govern-
ment's existing legislative powers and would take immediate effect.
changes would be quite separate from the permanent changes resulting from
the Bill, which will provide a broadly common system of control for both
aliens and Commonwealth Citizens, to take effect perhaps from 1st January
1972, which will probably also be announced just before the Second Reading
of the Bill and be linked with the publication of the Home Office White Paper
setting out the Immigration Rules for control on and after entry.
3. Separate consideration has been given to the best method of implementing
the Government's proposal to effect a reduction in the number of work permits
issued to aliens and a further separate paper on this is being prepared for
Ministers. A separate paper is also being prepared about the permanent arrang e-
ments for Commonwealth Citizens; this present paper seeks to clarify the
interim arrangements for Commonwealth Citizens.
4. It is important to emphasise that the assumption has been made that the
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