Another social issue that has arisen recently is that of naturalisation in the British Dependant Territories. The United Kingdom Government's White Paper "Partnership for Progress and Prosperity", which I have already mentioned, promised, amongst other things, to restore the right of abode in the United Kingdom to British Dependant Territories citizens.

So that you have a contextual framework in terms of existing legislation which governs issues pertaining to nationality and immigration, the United Kingdom Government's British Nationality Act 1981, which became effective on 1st January 1983, governs the acquisition of citizenship in Bermuda. The Bermuda Government's Bermuda Immigration and Protection Act 1956, governs the acquisition of Bermudian status. We understand that the United Kingdom's practice is to naturalise persons virtually automatically after five years of residence in the United Kingdom.

In the British Dependant Territories belonger status is far more important and relevant than British Dependant Territories citizenship which, in general, provides a person with a passport but nothing else.

A representative of the Home Office of the United Kingdom Government visited a number of the Dependant Territories to see at first hand how the Dependant Territories administered the British Nationality laws. One of the complaints made was that Bermuda, and other British Dependant Territories, do not entertain naturalisation applications from non-Bermudians who have resided in Bermuda for five years.

In the United Kingdom, after four years of residence, immigration restriction is lifted from foreign residents. After a further year's residence, such persons become eligible to apply for British Citizenship. In Bermuda, immigration restrictions remain on a resident as long as he or she remains in Bermuda unless he or she marries a Bermudian. In Bermuda it has been the practice for decades to recommend to the Governor for naturalisation, as British Dependant Territories citizens, only those persons who are Bermudian, or who upon naturalisation, will become Bermudian or will become deemed to be Bermudian. It would cause chaos if all non-Bermudians were granted citizenship after five years of residence.

The United Kingdom will grant British citizenship, by naturalisation, to about 90,000 people this year. Britain's population is some fifty-nine million, about 1,000 times that of Bermuda so that this number of naturalisations would be equivalent to Bermuda granting 90 people Bermudian status every year. On average, Bermuda already grants Bermudian status annually to 225 people. The relatively high annual rate of Bermudian status grants is a result of the evolution of the Bermudian status legislation to include all people who have a genuine connection with Bermuda.

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