TNAG-1193-FCO40-1495-Implications-for-Hong-Kong-of-changes-in-the-British-nationa-1982 — Page 119

CONFIDENTIAL

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Mr. Mc Quede

PRIME MINISTER

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BRITISH NATIONALITY (FALKLAND ISLANDS) AMENDMENT BILL

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Baroness Vickers has introduced a Bill (similar to those tabled(AO last Session by Mr Kilroy-Silk and Lord Bruce of Donnington) to give British citizenship to everyone who has a connection with the Falkland Islands. Under the British Nationality Act 1981, most Falkland Islanders will in fact be British citizens but there are estimated to be about 400 whose connections with the United Kingdom are not close enough to give them the right of abode. Baroness Vickers' Bill would give them British citizenship. They already have freedom to enter the United Kingdom under an administrative concession which I announced last April.

There are drawbacks to allowing the Bill to pass. It would create an exception to the principle only recently enacted in the British Nationality Act 1981 that the United Kingdom should have a citizenship (British citizenship) confined to those with close connections with the United Kingdom while the dependent territories should have their own citizenship.

Moreover the Bill may well be seen as a precedent. A House of Lords Question has already been tabled about the Pitcairn Islanders. The inhabitants of St Helena are known to wish to have British citizenship. The Hong Kong government may be less eager to press for further concessions if they are to have their way on nomenclature in passports. There is nevertheless a substantial risk that Hong Kong supporters will try and insert a provision giving legal backing to that administrative concession. This could be damaging because it would be almost impossible to leave British Overseas

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