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abode in Hong Kong. The same answer would be given in
the Adjournment Debate in the Legislative Council
February.
XA27
ADJOURNMENT DEBATE ON THE PROPOSED TITLE OF BRITISH NATIONAL (OVERSEAS)
The Deputy Secretary (General Duties) reported
that Unofficials would be raising the question of
statelessness in the debate. Their main question would
concern the position of the heirs to non-Chinese British
Dependent Territories Citizens (BDTCs). Children born
to such BDTCs after 1997 would acquire British Overseas
Citizenship (BOC) automatically, if they would otherwise
be stateless. However, this arrangement was intended by
HMG to cover only the first generation born after 30
June 1997. The children of these BOCs would be able to
acquire BOC status only under the discretionary powers
available to the Home Secretary but it was doubtful
whether these discretionary powers could be extended to
provide for the children of BOCs who were born in Hong
Kong after 1997. HMG had argued that they could not
make an indefinite commitment to continue to grant
British nationality to persons who are in fact settled
in a foreign country. In HMG's view, Schedule 2 of the
British Nationality Act 1981 met its commitment under
the Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness.
such children had
nationality, it
no
other
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was
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