§ Mr. MarlowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many Hong Kong citizens have applied for United Kingdom passports arising from recent legislation; and what is his latest estimate of the total numbers so entitled. including dependants.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydUnder the British Nationality (Hong Kong) Act 1990, 50,000 Hong Kong British nationals plus spouses and dependent children will be entitled to British citizenship. The total number of applications for the first tranche of 43,250 places is 66,025. New applications for the second tranche of the remaining 6,750 places will be invited closer to 1997; a date has not yet been decided. It is not possible to estimate what the total number of dependants will be until the final selection of successful applicants has been made.