§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he is aware that the Prime Minister of the Bahamas has officially declared that Bahamians will have to give up dual nationality on independence; and to what extent he estimates that British passport holders who opt for British nationality will wish to emigrate to Great Britain.
§ Mr. KershawIt is true that the Bahamas Government, in their White Paper on independence, have stated that it is their policy not to support dual nationality for Bahamians, except in cases of involuntary citizenship of another country whose laws permit this.
The Bahamas independence conference opens in Marlborough House tomorrow. One of the items for discussion is the question of citizenship, and I would hope that the outcome will be mutually satisfactory.