36. Mr. Dubs askedthe Minister for the Civil Service for which Civil Service posts it is a requirement that the applicants must have British parents; and what is the definition of British for this purpose.
§ Mr. HayhoeIt is not an absolute requirement for any Civil Service post that an applicant's parents must be 18 British citizens in the terms of the British Nationality Act 1981. The Civil Service Commission's nationality rules are difficult to summarise, and I am arranging for a copy to be placed in the Library.
§ Mr. DubsIs the Minister aware that the careers service, certainly in London, is advising applicants for clerical posts in the Ministry of Defence that they must have British parents? Will the Minister provide more information—possibly not this afternoon—on the basis of Civil Service recruitment, as the stipulation that applicants for fairly junior posts must have British parents is confusing, to say the least, and unduly restrictive?
§ Mr. HayhoeIt would appear from what the hon. Gentleman has said that there is some misunderstanding of the precise rules that should be applied. I am making them available in the Library. If the hon. Gentleman and anyone else have points that they would like to raise with me, I shall look into any detailed information that they want.