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CONFIDENTIAL
Statement on the Manpower and Public Expenditure Implications of the British Nationality (Hong Kong) Bill
Summary
1.
It is expected that 43,000 families will be recommended by
the Governor for British citizenship under the Bill during the
financial years 1991/2 to 1992/3. Applying an average family
size of 2.3 the number of individual recommendations to be
processed will be of the order of 100,000 or 50,000 in each year.
While
2. In assessing the number of UK staff needed in Hong Kong in
order to process these recommendations we have taken account of
the fact that registration will be almost automatic and will be
based on a brief case summary forwarded by the Governor. considerable uncertainties about the details of the arrangements
prevent a precise calculation our best estimate is that the team
may need to comprise one Grade 7, three HEOS and three EOS at a
cost of £800,000 per annum at forecast 1989/90 Hong Kong cost
levels.
The Hong Kong Government will provide office
accommodation and clerical support and will be required under the
Bill to reimburse to the Secretary of State his expenditure on
the UK team, the receipts to be paid into the Consolidated Fund.
3.
The administration of the selection scheme, which will be
a much larger exercise than the processing of recommendations,
will fall entirely to the Hong Kong Government and will not
affect UK manpower or running costs.
4. The Governor will be empowered to impose application and
registration fees. He intends to set these at a level sufficient
to recover the costs of administration, including that element
of the work which will fall to the Secretary of State.
5.
In order to cope with the expected increase in demand for
British citizen passports in Hong Kong facility will be
CONFIDENTIAL