§ Mr. Lomasasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will take steps to amend the present law whereby British nationals born abroad in former Commonwealth countries do not forgo their British citizenship when the country in which they were born becomes independent.
§ Mr. Merlyn ReesThe standard practice has been to provide in Independence Acts that a person acquiring citizenship of the newly-independent country retains citizenship of the United Kingdom and Colonies only if he, his father or his father's father was born in the United Kingdom or a remaining colony or was naturalised in the United Kingdom and Colonies or was registered as a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies.
My right hon. Friend has no proposals to amend these provisions, but I shall be glad to look into any particular aspect that may be causing my hon. Friend concern.