22 May 1992
Jeremy Hanley MP House of Commons LONDON
PS/M Goodland
Polish
22/5-
Thank you for your letter of 15 May to Douglas Hurd enclosing of one from your constituent, Group Captain Hugh Verity, whose son-in-law, Mr W AR Crawley has written to him about the question of British passports for the wives or widows of war veterans resident in Hong Kong.
Mr Crawley asks why nothing has been done by the British Government to give British passports to this group of people. Acquisition of British citizenship is governed by the British Nationality Act 1981 and that Act, as presently worded, contains no powers for the Home Secretary to grant automatic citizenship to people in this position.
The immigration and nationality status of the spouses of British citizens and former servicemen was debated very fully during the passage of the British Nationality (Hong Kong) Act 1990. Parliament did not think it either right or necessary to exempt the spouses of British citizens and former servicemen from the residential requirements set out in the British Nationality Act 1981. However, the assurances which the Home Secretary gave during the passage of the Hong Kong Act mean that British citizens or former servicemen need not feel any pressure to leave Hong Kong simply to secure their spouse's immigration status. Their spouses have a guarantee that they will be allowed to come to the United Kingdom at any time in the future and if they choose to settle here they would in due course become eligible to apply for British citizenship in the normal way. These assurances apply equally to the widows of former servicemen.
The Government certainly recognise that the wives and widows of former Hong Kong servicemen are a unique group of people, and were concerned to meet their needs as far as was possible within the Home Secretary's existing powers. The special arrangements which have been made for this group do provide all the practical assurances that they need.
JEDAAX
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