CTWAFV
BRIEF C: ADMINISTRATION OF HONG KONG UP TO 1997
NATIONALITY
1.
Arrangements made for BDTCs up to and beyond 1997
Existing arrangements
The present nationality and immigration position of Hong Kong British nationals reflects Britain's global policies in these areas dating back to the 1960s. Those policies were not specifically directed at Hong Kong, nor were they conceived with the transition in Hong Kong's status in 1997 in mind. The present laws reflect the wishes of Parliament as they have developed over the years.
We are firmly committed to Hong Kong's future. We believe that the Joint Declaration and the draft Basic Law provide a suitable framework within which Hong Kong people can look to the future with confidence. All our efforts are directed towards ensuring that Hong Kong remains a dynamic and thriving place where people will continue. to want to make their homes. Our objective in all of this must be
to ensure that Hong Kong does not lose out.
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The Government have noted calls for Hong Kong people to be given right of abode in Britain. That would require a change in the law. I have to say quite frankly that I do not believe that it is
realistic to think in those terms. I do not believe that it would
be acceptable to Parliament, or to the British public at large, to give 3 1/4 million people the automatic right of abode in this country, even if most of those concerned had no intention of leaving Hong Kong.
Nevertheless there are channels for people from Hong Kong, as from elsewhere in the world, to be allowed entry to Britain for
settlement purposes in certain circumstances. (See section 1 of
Brief).