30 November 1993
ния 340/8
110 004
Foreign & Commonwealth
Office
87
43
RECE
Mrs Anita Angus
3 O NOV 1993
29 Dunottar Avenue
Boatbridge
London SWIA 2AH
Telephone: 071-270-2654
Strathclyde
Nut.
Scotland, ML5 4LN
Your letter to the Prime Minister about the refusal of the British Government to grant British passports to the widows of Hong Kong servicemen who lost their lives in the service of the Crown has been passed to this department for reply.
I understand your feelings towards the widows, whose husbands bravely served in the defence of Hong Kong during the Second World War. Those men made a heroic contribution to Hong Kong. I am sure that this is not ignored in this country.
The question of British citizenship for this small group of ladies has been very carefully considered by Ministers. The problem is that there is no provision in nationality law to grant British citizenship to a person who is not resident in the United Kingdom. Thus, the Government does not have the power to grant what these ladies are asking for. However assurances have been given by Ministers that these ladies could settle in the United Kingdom at any time and apply for British citizenship in the normal way. The government have also done all they can to ensure that if any of these ladies want to apply for entry clearance to the United Kingdom, their applications can be processed very quickly.
Mark Gee
Hong Kong Department
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