Miss Brooks
Legal Advisers
Reference
CC Mr Clift HKGD
Mr Spreckley ECD (1)
ie. it û
at
discretion!
NATIONALITY BILL:
1.
CHILDREN OF 'BUSINESSMEN '
I attach a copy of a letter dated 3 December from Parliamentary Counsel to the Home Office legal advisers enclosing a draft sub- clause on the acquisition of British citizenship by the overseas- born children of British citizens who possess their status otherwise than by birth in the UK. Also enclosed is a similarly worded sub- clause dealing with citizenship of the British Dependent Territories
You may find it useful to know the NTD initial comments which I set out below.
2.
(a) the subclause opens by saying that registration as British citizen is an entitlement. Yet registration is dependent on the Secretary of State being satisfied that conditions are met. It woul be logical to start off with the words 'The Secretary of State may cause to be registered
but Parliamentary Counsel no doubt have reasons for the form of words they use.
(b) the requirement that application for registration of a child be made within 12 months of the birth is new. Our experience of consular births registration is that the UK belonger registers his child within the first year of its life and we are content that the requirement stand;
(c) it is not clear whether the words 'wholly or mainly' in para (2)(b) refer to 'employment' or 'outside the UK'. We shall take this up with the Home Office;
(d) we shall need to ascertain from the Home Office the meaning of the words 'circumstances of the employment' in para (2)(c);
(e) para (2)(d) makes odd reading. Even a Secretary of State may not be able to ascertain the former intentions of a deceased person;
(f) the use of the words 'on secondment' in para (3)(b) appear, because of the definition at (d) on page 3, to exclude employees of eg the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank, a company established oversea
3. Because of the shortness of time I should be grateful if you and other recipients of this minute (Mr Clift will wish to consider the subclauses in connexion with all the dependent territories) could let me have comments by 8 December. I am also seeking the comments of ODA and the British Council. The Dept of Trade are dealing with the Home Office direct.
CODE 18-77
SS 8/78
5 December 1980
HM PATERSON NTD