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which precluded the use of the term "national" in relation to any citizenship titles.
On 4th June 1981 the House of Commons approved the British Nationality Bill, as amended in Committee, by 287 votes to 234. In closing the debate the Home Secretary and Mr Timothy Raison repeated earlier assurances that the Bill would in no way alter HMG's commitment to the dependent territories and that CBDTS would remain British.
On 22nd July 1988, the House of Lords amended the Bill to afford the British subjects of Gibraltar the right to be registered as British citizens. The amendment was agreed, we were told, on grounds of Gibraltar's special position in the EEC.
On 28th July 1981, Sir S Y CHUNG, whilst in London to represent Hong Kong at the Royal Wedding, took the opportunity to press Hong Kong's case with Mr Nicholas idley, Minister of State
for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs. He also briefed Sir Paul Bryan on Hong Kong's reaction and position in regard to the concession allowed to Gibraltar.
In October 1981, the debate on the British Nationality Bill was resumed in the House of Lords. In the light of the concession to Gibraltar, UMELCO asked the Governor to convey to the Foreign Secretary our continuing grave concern that the Bill failed to make it clear that CBDTs remained British Nationals. UMELCO urged that the law should repeat the assurances given by HMG to Hong Kong in the course of the Bill's Third Reading in the House of Commons.
On 10th October 1981, UMELCO learned that Lord Geddes had put down an amendment to the Bill to provide that all BCs, CBDT's and BOCs should have the status of British National.
Sir S Y CHUNG conveyed UMELCO's full support for this amendment in a cable addressed to Lord Geddes, which reads in part, and I quote :-
"One of our main concerns from the beginning, has been that
the British connection and status of Citizens of United Kingdom and Colonies in Dependent Territories, who already have no right of entry to an abode in the United Kingdom,
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