CONTRIBUTION TO DRAFT SPEECH ON PASSPORT MATTERS
The Draft Order essentially is about attaining the new status of British National (Overseas). The House will expect me however, to touch on some passport matters which while lying outside the terms of the Draft Order are of considerable interest. Hong Kong's particular interest was indeed recognised at the time of publication of the White Paper there when a note describing the essentials of our proposals for passport issuing was also made available by the Hong Kong Government.
It will be possible to apply for BN (0) passports in Hong Kong obviously, but also from Passport Offices in the United Kingdom and from consular posts overseas. While the great bulk of passport issuing will clearly be dealt with in Hong Kong we hope that by providing for applications to be dealt with elsewhere we are offering a convenient service for those from Hong Kong who may find themselves in the UK or in other parts of the world.
The Governor is at present responsible for the issue of passports in Hong Kong and these have a different format from those issued in the United Kingdom. The intention is, however, that BN (0) passports will be issued in Hong Kong in the name of the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary. This requires a change in format of the passport, making quite clear that it carries the authority of Her Majesty's Government and ensuring that it will continue in the same form after June 1997 as before.
Hon Members will be aware that there is to be a change, in any case, in the format of British passports as a consequence of the decision to give a common format to the national passports of European Community Member States and our decision that the UK passport should be machine-readable. My predecessor's statement on 24 July last year [
Cols 566-7] and the detailed background note which accompanied it indicated our intention to issue two types of passport; one for those who are UK nationals for EC purposes and the other for those including BN (0)s who are not. They will be identical save for the absence from the latter of EC references on the cover and, on the inside, the absence of other EC languages, save for French, and certain modifications to the pages which this permits. The BN (0) revised format passport, therefore, like the proposed common European Community format will be burgundy red, soft-covered and of smaller size than the present blue document. the cover will be the wording "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland", the Royal Coat of Arms and "Passport"; the wording on the inside cover will refer to "Her Britannic Majesty's Secretary of State".
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