TNAG-1087-FCO40-1337-Implications-for-Hong-Kong-of-changes-in-the-British-nationa-1982 — Page 59

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My honourable Friend, the Member for Howden (Sir Paul Bryan) spoke

again with great knowledge and feeling about Hong Kong. I was glad

that he said that he realised that any concern there may be in Hong

Kong about this Bill is probably based on a misunderstanding of the

very real sense of commitment to Hong Kong that this Government feels.

I am glad to repeat this and to say again that nothing in this Bill

in any way lessens that commitment to Hong Kong or to any other

Dependent Territory.

My honourable Friend also mentioned undertakings given by my right

honourable Friend, the Minister of State, at Report Stage in this

place. I am happy to confirm once again that British Dependent

Territories' citizens as I hope we shall now agree to call them

will remain United Kingdom nationals in the sense that the United

Kingdom can afford consular protection and represent their interests.

internationally. Of course we shall continue to do that and to do

everything possible to avoid difficulties for those citizens with

immigration officers in third countries.

My honourable Friend went on to seek assurances that this status

and these undertakings would continue to apply whether a Dependent

Territory remained in Schedule 6 or not. I should point out that

a Dependent Territory may only be removed from Schedule 6 by

Parliament.

If there were to be a change in the status of a dependency the

question of the national status in our law of people from that

/dependency