TNAG-1378-FCO40-1826-Future-of-Hong-Kong-legislation-Hong-Kong-Bill-1985 — Page 77

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by 31 December 1997 if they were born in 1997 before 1 July). The

latter will allow a short period of grace after

after the relevant date

for the parents of newly born children to opt on their behalf to

acquire the new status. The period is fixed by the UK Memorandum

and cannot be extended.

An

amendment was introduced at the Committee stage in the House of

Commons to incorporate the title of the new form of nationality British National (Overseas) in paragraph 2(1)(b) of the Schedule.

The title was agreed by the Hong Kong Executive Council and

and the

Chinese Government, and was first announced by the Secretary of

State at the Second Reading in the House of Commons. The reaction

to the title in Hong Kong was favourable, and the Governor and

Executive Council advised that the title should be incorporated in

the Bill at the Committee stage.

Paragraph 2(2) provides that the Order in Council may set a cut-off

date or dates before 1 July 1997 by

by which time applications in

respect of the new status must be made in order for them to be

valid, and that

that this status may be retained in 1997 by persons who

are BDTCs on 30 June 1997. The first provision is required in order

to allow sufficient time for applications to be processed SO that applicants who choose to acquire the new status will get it before 1

July 1997; the second is to prevent

to prevent someone who has acquired the new

status from retaining it if he ceases to be a BDTC before 1 July

1997. Both these are necessary to accord with the provisions of the

UK memorandum.

Paragraph 2 (3)

provides that the Order in Council ma y make provision for the avoidance of statelessness and may contain such supplementary, transitional and consequential provisions as are

considered necessary or expedient for the purposes of the Order, including provisions amending the British Nationality Act 1981 and

other legislation. The first provision reflects the United

Kingdom's obligations under the UN Convention on the Reduction of

Statelessness and commitments made by Ministers in Parliament on 5

and 10 December 1984. The main categories of persons for wh om provison will need to be made

to be made are i) children born after 1 July 1997

to former Hong Kong BDTCs who are not regarded as Chinese nationals,

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