TNAG-2373-FCO40-3448-Hong-Kong-nationality-UK-passport-scheme-British-Nationalit-1991 — Page 62

Letter from The Chairman

The closing date for applications to be submitted for full British passports was 28th February, and at the time of going to

press,

indications were that the total number received would

fall considerably short of the expected 300,000.

The Chamber is extremely disappointed with this response, but in view of the flaws in the scheme, not particularly surprised. The publicity about the

about the scheme was poor, and the application form complicated, and extremely difficult to complete.

In addition the scheme was administered, not by the British Home Office, as the Chamber had recommended, but by the Immigration

Department. This had led

led to fears on the part of potential applicants that their details would be recorded and, if they

were not successful, possibly

possibly count against them in future

years.

In the opinion of the Chamber, these factors will have had the effect of titling the scheme in the favour of the Civil Service at the expense of the private sector.

From the first announcement of the scheme, the Chamber felt

considerable disquiet about the way in which it was to be

administered, and expressed this concern on a number of occasions. Unfortunately, those in charge of its implementation have paid little heed to our views, or indeed to the views of anyone who criticised or suggested improvements to the process.

The result is that, as the application stage draws to a close, the scheme is clearly not working satisfactorily.

This phase

phase of the scheme is only intended to issue 43,500

passports to

to heads of household, leaving 6,500 for a second phase. The Chamber will continue to make representations to try and ensure that the mistakes made this time are not repeated.