§ Mr. BoswellTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the development of the programme for(a) welcoming new UK citizens and (b) improving their competence in the English language. [144074]
§ Beverley HughesBecoming a UK citizen is an important step and we want to welcome new citizens with the right balance of solemnity and celebration. We hope that the introduction of citizenship ceremonies this year will help those who settle here to gain a fuller appreciation of the civic and political dimensions of British citizenship, to play an active role in society and to feel a greater sense of belonging to the wider UK community.
The 'Life in the UK' Advisory Group, which we appointed to look at the content, conduct and implementation of programmes of study for new citizens, published its final report on 3 September. The report made a number of recommendations concerning the provision of language programmes, both for naturalisation applicants and for new migrants. We are 888W working with the Departments for Education and Skills and for Work and Pensions to assess the implications of these recommendations.
As we said when the report was published, we welcome the broad thrust of these proposals and are now looking at the best way of taking them forward; we intend to announce our conclusions shortly.