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British Nationality Order 1993
[EARL FERRERS]
[LORDS]
allocated by then. The second and last phase will begin on 3rd January 1994 and will last until 30th June 1997 -at which point the Chinese assume the sovereignty of Hong Kong.
The new order makes some relatively minor adjustments to the selection scheme in the light of the experience which we obtained in the first tranche. At first sight your Lordships may find the detail of the order rather daunting -with a little algebra inserted to remind your Lordships of your schooldays. It may be helpful, therefore, if I were to explain its main provisions.
The 1990 order has been found to be somewhat rigid, and the main aim of the new order is to modify certain provisions of the scheme so as to make it easier to allocate the remaining places. The order will allow us to allocate the remaining places in such a way that more places can be provided to those areas where the demand has been strongest.
The orders which are before your Lordships this evening do not, however, make any separate provision for non-Chinese ethnic minorities to acquire British citizenship. Non-Chinese ethnic minorities can, of course, participate in the scheme in the same way as everybody else. The Motion which appears on the Order Paper in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Bonham-Carter, and which he will move shortly, urges the Government to give British citizenship to the members of that community. We wait with interest to hear what the noble Lord says.
In the first tranche of the selection scheme there are one or two categories in which fewer people than expected have applied for citizenship. That has occurred mostly among private sector managers and administrators. There has been a shortfall of applicants in that category of some 4,250, and among the police there has been a shortfall of about 150 applicants. It also appears that the number of potentially successful candidates in both the sensitive service class and the entrepreneurs class may turn out to be less than that for which provision had been made in the quota. The order provides, therefore, for places to be transferred from those categories to groups where they will be used.
It is anticipated that any transfers between groups and classes will take place on a date to be specified by the Governor. That will probably be before the processing of applications in the relevant group or class has been completed, but not until the Hong Kong Government have established the size of the unused quota.
Places in the second tranche will be allocated to individual groups on the basis of the same attributes as those which were used in the first tranche, but places will also be allocated in relation to the strength of demand from individual groups who applied in the first tranche. A few adjustments have been made to the scheme, but they are all technical.
So much for the selection scheme order. The second order the Hong Kong
Hong Kong (British Nationality) (Amendment) Order-sets out a number of deadlines by which British Dependent Territory citizens need to register as British nationals (overseas) if they wish to
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have this status. The purpose of this order is to ensure that those who wish to acquire British dependent territory citizenship and British national (overseas) status can acquire those statuses—or more properly, I think, "stati"-before Hong Kong reverts to China in 1997. British dependent territory citizenship expires at that point.
The Hong Kong (British Nationality) Order 1986 provides that all British dependent territory citizens can acquire British national (overseas) status and passports before that date.
Under the terms of the United Kingdom Memorandum which is attached to the Joint Declaration, and Article 4(2) of the Hong Kong (British Nationality) Order 1986, we cannot process applications for British national (overseas) status after 30th June 1997 when the Chinese assume the sovereignty of Hong Kong.
It is estimated that there are some 3.3 million British dependent territory citizens who are, or who will be, eligible for British national (overseas) status and in fact only half a million of them have so far obtained British national (overseas) passports.
Unless we act now, the fear is that many of those 3.3 million people who are eligible will apply very close to 1997, and the Hong Kong Immigration Department will not physically be able to process so many applications before the 30th June deadline.
There would clearly be a serious problem if large numbers of applications were to remain unprocessed after the deadline had been reached. We are therefore anxious to institute a phased programme of British national (overseas) registrations so as to encourage an orderly flow of applications and to avoid an overwhelming last minute rush.
We think that cut-off dates for the acquisition of both Hong Kong British dependent territory citizens and British national (overseas) status are the only way to ensure that the people who are eligible for British national (overseas) status can acquire it if they so wish. Without any deadlines, there are no incentives for people to apply in good time.
The order therefore makes cut-off dates for different age groups, at three to five month intervals. The first cut-off date will come into place in October this
year for 22 to 26 year-olds. The last one will come into place in September 1997 for children who were born in the last six months prior to hand-over.
The Governor will have discretion to accept late applications in certain cases. Those would be in respect of people who will not have fulfilled the time requirement for them to have British dependent territory citizenship before their British national (overseas) citizen cut-off date had passed. The governor will also have discretion for applicants who may have some other good reason for not having applied before.
The Governor has proposed that an appeal panel should be set up to deal with any late cases which the Immigration Department may refuse, and that is being discussed with the Hong Kong Legislative Council.
In order to ensure that there will be sufficient time to naturalise those who wish to become British