-2-
The government is proposing to grant British citizenship to a limited number of key people without them ever having to come to Britain in order to qualify for this. Our scheme will cover a maximum of 50,000 households which when dependants are included means a total of up to 225,000 people. The scheme will be selective. People will qualify under a fair points system similar to the systems operated by Canada and Australia in their immigration policies. Priority will be given to such factors as an employee's importance to his employer's business, professional qualifications, personal links with Britain and the ability to speak English. Arrangements are being made for all applications under the scheme to be processed by 30 June 1997. The government's scheme will be strictly limited in numbers, scope and duration. The legislation will be ring fenced to ensure that it cannot be used as a vehicle to bring about wider changes in the government's immigration policy."
• ..
The letter could then continue as in the original draft beginning with the sentence "As the statement makes clear
4.
11
дл
David Lidington Special Adviser
Page 180Page 181