BRITISH NATIONALITY (No. 2) BILL (Hansard, 29 June 1964)

§ LORD WALSTON
My Lords, I beg to move that this Bill be now read a second time. This is not a very long Bill. Its main object is primarily to fulfil some of the conditions which this country agreed to in the Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, which was agreed to in New York at the United Nations on August 30, 1961; and, also, 494 at the same time, to remove a certain number of anomalies that exist with regard to British nationality. It is a Bill of six clauses, none of them of any great length, though possibly at first reading not quite so clearly understandable as one might hope some Bills to be. Therefore, I will very briefly, to the best of my ability, describe to your Lordships what the actual provisions of the clauses are.
Clause 1 sets out the additional grounds on which British citizenship can be claimed by registration. There are in fact three classes of people who can claim. The first and the most important class of person, perhaps, is the person whose mother was at the date of his birth a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies, but who in fact was born in a foreign country, if such a person would otherwise be stateless. In other words, should some English girl or woman find herself in a foreign country giving birth to an illegitimate child, where there is no father acknowleged as in certain countries, such a child would be stateless. But by reason of his mother's nationality being. British, he is under this Bill entitled to claim British nationality.
The second class of person is a child who is actually born in the United Kingdom and Colonies, but who nevertheless would be stateless. That seems to be an unlikely thing to happen, though it can in fact happen from time to time if an illegitimate child is born in the United Kingdom or Colonies and does not acquire citizenship by birth, if his father, who is not himself a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies, possesses diplomatic immunity, or if his father is an enemy alien and the birth occurs in a part of the United Kingdom and Colonies under enemy occupation. Some such children may be stateless at birth; and, if so, this Bill enables them to acquire citizenship of the United Kingdom and Colonies.
The third part of subsection (1) refers primarily to certain transitional classes defined in detail in the Schedule to the Bill. Broadly speaking, a person is qualified under this provision by reason of parentage if he was born before one of his parents automatically acquired citizenship of the United Kingdom and Colonies, or, by reason of residence and 495 parentage, if he is the child of a British subject without citizenship and has resided in this country. As I said, the particular objects set out in paragraphs (a) and (c) of this clause are necessary in order for us to conform with Article 4 of the United Nations Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness.
Subsection (2) of Clause 1 provides that subsection (1) shall apply to persons born before, as well as to those born on or after, the date on which the Bill comes into force. Subsection (3) provides that a minor aged 16 or over may apply on his own behalf, and that a parent or guardian may apply on behalf of a minor whatever his age may be. Subsection (4) applies Section 8 and, in certain cases, Section 9 of the British Nationality Act, 1948. The effect of applying Section 8 is that Governors of Colonies and Protectorates will automatically have authority to exercise the Secretary of State's functions in relation to persons living in their territories; and, in the Commonwealth, that the Secretary of State may make arrangements for British High Commissioners to exercise his functions.
There is further provision for the purposes of the transmission of citizenship. A male person in category (b) above will he in the same position as any other citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies who is actually born in the United Kingdom and Colonies. He can transmit his citizenship to his children automatically, wherever they are born. But as to the male persons referred to in categories (a) and (c), they, like other United Kingdom citizens born outside the United Kingdom and Colonies, will be regarded as citizens by descent. Unless, therefore, such a person is in Crown service, his children born in an independent Commonwealth country will not, if they acquire the citizenship of that country, acquire citizenship of the United Kingdom and Colonies, while his children born in a foreign country will do so only if their births are registered at a British consulate.
Clause 2 refers to the same class of persons as is referred to in Clause 1(1)(b)—that is, those who, though born in the United Kingdom and Colonies, are nevertheless stateless; in other words, 496 certain children of diplomats and enemy aliens. The subsection there provides that where such a person is born after the Bill comes into force of a mother who is a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies, that person should acquire citizenship of the United Kingdom and Colonies automatically. Subsection (2) refers to a foundling found in the United Kingdom and Colonies after the commencement of the Bill, who, until the contrary is shown, shall be deemed to have been born in this country. I cannot state from any personal experience that there are a large number of foundlings still deposited on the doorsteps of certain great houses in Grosvenor Square and elsewhere, but, in case that should happen, their future is now assured. Clause 3 deals with the late registration of birth for the avoidance of statelessness, and provides that the Secretary of State shall not withhold his approval to such late registration if the child is, and always has been, stateless. Subsection (2) makes a similar modification to Section 17 of the Act of 1948, which deals with the registration, after January 1, 1949, of births occurring before that date.
Clause 4 deals with the restriction on the deprivation of citizenship. Subsection (1) provides that the Secretary of State shall not deprive a naturalised person of his citizenship of the United Kingdom and Colonies on the grounds specified in a certain section of the earlier Act if such deprivation would render him stateless. In other words, it makes it impossible that anybody, by being deprived of United Kingdom citizenship, should then become stateless. Subsection (2) repeals two other provisions relating to deprivation. One of these provides for deprivation if a naturalised person has lived abroad continuously for seven years and has neither been in Crown Service nor has registered annually his intention to retain citizenship of the United Kingdom and Colonies; and the second provides for deprivation if a person has been deprived of the citizenship of another Commonwealth country. Both those two, it is proposed by Clause 4, should be repealed.
Clause 5, the last of the substantive clauses, deals with British protected persons, enabling certain classes of persons to be declared by Order in Council to be 497 British protected persons by reason of their connection with a former Protectorate, Protected State or United Kingdom Trust Territory. Its purpose is to enable the Order in Council which gives effect to the Statelessness Convention to cover the children of persons who have retained the status of British protected persons under any of the recent independence Acts.
My Lords, I cannot pretend that this Bill will affect the lives of a very large number of people; but, for all that, I commend it to your Lordships, not only because it brings us into line now with the United Nations Convention on Statelessness to which we have subscribed but which, as the law stands at the moment, we are in certain respects unable to implement, but also because, when such cases as I have described do take place—and from time to time they do, particularly with regard to the illegitimate children of British mothers, who would be otherwise stateless; it is not a completely unknown thing to happen—it will avoid a very large amount of personal suffering and unhappiness. For that reason, if for no other, I think this Bill is well worthy of your Lordships' thought, and is one which I hope will become the law of this country with the smallest possible delay or argument. My Lords, I beg to move that the Bill be now read a second time.

§ LORD CHORLEY
My Lords, I should like to add a word in support of the argument which my noble friend has addressed to the House in introducing this Bill. I had the interesting—indeed, valuable—experience of working for a time in the Nationality Division of the Home Office during the war, and that brought home to me the fact that there are quite a number of anomalies in our law relating to British status and citizenship. I am therefore glad to see that, to some extent, at any rate, the Bill which is before us this afternoon removes some of these, particularly those which are concerned with the very anomalous and tragic position of statelessness.
During this particular period—and, indeed, during the years immediately prior to the war. when refugees from Hitler were coming to this country—time and 498 again the terrible tragedy of statelessness was brought before those of us who worked in trying to help these people. The tragedy of that situation led to this Convention, which it is the main object of this Bill to implement. It is a very tragic position to be stateless; and while one hopes and prays that the sort of situation through which we went in this period may never be repeated, certainly, if it were, this Bill would prove of the greatest value in preventing the kind of tragic desolation which came home to very many of us during that time. That is the main reason why I want to support this Bill.
There are, perhaps, one or two points in the Bill which at first sight might appear open to objection. It is a very valuable part of the law that a person who has, so to speak, abused, his citizenship should be deprived of it from time to time. But I am quite sure that if the consequence is to make him stateless, then the result is out of all proportion to his offence—if offence it be—not only from the point of view of the man himself but also from the point of view of the general administration of the law and of the authorities in the Home Office. it would be of great value to prevent that sort of situation arising. I am not quite sure whether Clause 4 (2) makes it as clear as it might that it will apply only in a situation which will result in statelessness. I suppose that one can say that is the implication, but it is not absolutely clear; and it might be just as well at the Committee stage to make it quite clear.
It is also not over-clear that there is a certain amount of overlapping between Clause 2 and the earlier part of Clause 1. Perhaps that point also could be looked at by the Government draftsmen. No doubt the Government, if they accept this Bill, will see to it that any necessary tidying-up of this kind is carried through, since it is important that the law in relation to citizenship should be very clear. During the experience to which I have referred many difficulties were caused as the result of lack of clarity in the law. I therefore hope that great care will be taken in this Bill by the draftsmen, who are so competent to deal with these problems, before it finally reaches the Statute Book.

§ LORD DERWENT
My Lords, may I say a word on behalf of the Government? It gives me a great pleasure to welcome the action of the noble Lord, Lord Walston, in sponsoring this Bill, which makes a small but significant contribution to the reduction of statelessness—an object which will I am sure command the sympathy of your Lordships' House.
For many years there has been much concern over the problems arising from statelessness. This concern is shared by Her Majesty's Government, and the United Kingdom took an active part in the two Conferences held under the auspices of the United Nations, in 1959 and 1961, on the reduction or elimination of future statelessness. As a result of these Conferences the United Nations Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness came into being in August, 1961, and was signed on behalf of the United Kingdom Government immediately it was open for signature. This Bill results directly from our signature of that Convention. Noble Lords will not expect me to comment in detail upon the ways in which the Bill seeks to change our nationality law; these have already been explained by the noble Lord. I would say to the noble Lord, Lord Chorley, that the Government draftsmen are satisfied about the points he raised on Clause 4; but I will look at it again to make quite certain. I should, however, like to assure your Lordships that if the Bill is passed, the, Government will be prepared, as soon as the necessary consultations with the overseas territories for which we are responsible have been completed, to deposit with the Secretary-General of the United Nations Organisation the United Kingdom's instrument of ratification of the Convention. It may well be that the United Kingdom will be the first country to ratify the Convention, and I should 500 like to express my sincere hope that this will encourage other nations to accede to it.
In conclusion, may I repeat my gratitude to the noble Lord, Lord Walston, for taking upon himself the care of this Bill through your Lordships' House. The Bill has the Government's full support and I trust that your Lordships will feel able to give it a Second Reading.

§ LORD WALSTON
My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Derwent, for his remarks and, more particularly, for his support of the Bill on behalf of the Government, and for the help his Department has given in its preparation. I would also thank my noble friend Lord Chorley for his comments, and I should like to reiterate what he so well brought out: the sad plight of these people—few though they may be in number—who find themselves stateless. I echo the words of the noble Lord, Lord Derwent, that it will be a considerable triumph for this country to be the first to take positive action to endorse the fine words which are so often spoken by international bodies when so often the action needed to implement them is delayed. I hope, with him, that we shall be the first to do this, and set a good example which others may follow.