TNAG-1085-FCO40-1335-Implications-for-Hong-Kong-of-changes-in-the-British-nationa-1981 — Page 169

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CWI/73 1230/302/3

GVM 349/3

Enter & submit to 11. Sumes

OME OFFICE

Lunar House, Wellesley Road, CROYDON CR9 2BY

Tephone: 01-686 0333, ext. 2414

GUM 34913

D.W. Partridge Esq.,

Migration & Visa Department

Foreign & Commonwealth Office

Room 421

Clive House

Petty France

LONDON SWI

.95

3 - AUG 1981

DERK

31 July 1981

sting Tal

Münk

ENTITLEMENT TO READMISSION TO THE UK

Thank you for your letter of 28 May enclosing one from the Government Secretariat of Hong Kong on the above topic. I am sorry you have not had an earlier reply.

I enclose a copy of Richard Bradley's letter of 5 February to Mark Stevens. This gives our view on the instruction in DSP volume 25, paragraph 7 of Appendix 11, about the readmission endorsement. The question whether the entitlement to readmission can extend to holders of Dependent Territory passports is referred to in the second paragraph. The entitlement is derived from paragraph 5 of the Rules. The first part of this refers to those holding United Kingdom passports issued before 1 January 1973 which exempted them from immigration control until the Immigration Act came into force, and the second part refers to United Kingdom passport holders who have previously been admitted for settlement. As we see it there was never any intention that Colonial belongers, vho have an unqualified right of residence in a given dependency, should be indefinitely readmissible to the United Kingdom. This is the view impliec by DSP Volume 41, of which Home Kong were aware. They do not appear to have acted on our advice that the instructions on this poin in Volume 25 were incorrect. Furthermore, there appears to be no reason why such people (i.e. those living with the right of residency in a dependency who obtain a passport outside the dependency) should be treated more favourably than other Commonwealth citizens in this respect. Paragraph 5 is intended to benefit special voucher holders, or those who might. otherwise swell the numbers queueing for vouchers.

We are at present considering how paragraph 5 of the Rules should be amended when the Nationality Act comes into force. In logic it should apply to British Overseas citizens. However it may be that some citizens of the British Dependent Territories will be covered by Ministers' under- taking that no one lawfully settled here will be worse off as a result of the Nationality Bill. The point is arguable and if it were thought necessary to make some concession it might best be done administratively. Ultimately this will have to be a matter for Ministers.