3-1620
19:34
CROSBY SECURITIES H.K.
PEB 277 283F
F.DE
7.
What is the effect of our departure--on the families themselves
The decision to sell up and leave Hong Kong will for most people in this position be a sad and costly one. It will meen terminating one's carest with no automatic prospect of similar and suitable employment back in Britain. It will mean disrupting cur childrens' schooling. It will mean a complete change. The disruption will be considerable and most stressful.
A
8. What do we want
We would like to be able to stay here and continue contributing to Hong Kong's future over the difficult years ahead. We have an immense amount to offer, particularly given the continued need for experienced people as a result of emigration. However, we can only tolerate this continued investment in our future in the knowledge that our families are safe. Under current arrangements, even with the proposed "provision" promised by the Home Secretary, we are not confident that we can remain bere without putting our families at risk.
What we ask is that the three year qualification period before a non-British spouse can apply for citizenship be permitted to take place on British soil in Hong Kong. We fully recognise the need for suitable controls in order to prevent abuse, but would have thought that appropriate controls to ensure that a marriage was real and not one of convenience could just as easily be applied here as in Eritizin. In fact, given the small size of the British community here it would most likely be easier to monitor whether a marriage was bona fide or not in Hong Kong than in Britain.
Hence having demonstrated that our marriage was a real and lasting one our spouses would become entitled te a passport without having to return to the UK. Nothing less than this is likely to allay our fears for the future.
9.Is what we ask unreasonable?
We believe that our request is entirely reasonable, consistent with the Government's stated objectives in relation to Hong Kong and does not need to set any unwelcome precedents.
i) It is our experience that most British people already assume that our spouses have British citizenship as a result of their marriage to us. They are typically surprised to learn the truth. Indeed, most MPS who we have met at various stages over the last few years have also expressed surprise at our circumstances and have confirmed that our specific circumstances were not intended by the BNA 1981.
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