TNAG-1188-FCO40-1490-Implications-for-Hong-Kong-of-changes-in-the-British-nationa-1982 — Page 129

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CONFIDENTIAL

香港總督府

By Bweeks for williamson 29/3

HKCD poraduce * draft reply please

GOVERNMENT HOUSE

HONG KONG

16th March 1982...

CL

PS PSIUS.

Mr. Coffered Mr. Donald

HIIT 340

NTD

Der Lord Pring Seal,

CONCER

! REG KY

PA

During your visit in January Unofficial Members

of the Executive and Legislative Councils (UMELCO) expressed the hope that the legal arguments which pre- cluded "nationality" from being defined in the British Nationality Act 1981 would be examined again.

2.

* maza Takga

Seek

As you well know and despite repeated assurances by Ministers that the creation of a British Dependent Territories citizenship is in no way intended to weaken the links between the dependencies and the United Kingdom, and that the Act in no way affects the United Kingdom's moral and constitutional responsibilities for Hong Kong, UMELCO continue to be concerned that the Britishness of BDTCs has been in some way diminished. I sympathize with them and have an uneasy feeling that the change in the national status in their passports is going to give rise to problems with third country immigration officials and therefore with their freedom of travel. Currently the description of 'National status' on page 1 in the passports of -

(a) persons with the right of abode in UK; and

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(b) persons with the right of abode in Hong Kong,

is identical, i.e. "British subject: citizen of the

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(47

(89

The Rt Hon Humphrey Atkins MP

Foreign and Commonwealth Office London

CONFIDENTIAL

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