General Discussion

pampango

(24,692 posts) Mon Jan 6, 2014, 09:54 AM Jan 2014

How long do you have to be in Britain (or the US) before it's 'yours'?

How long do you have to be in Britain before claiming the right to call it yours? Is it about years of residence? Or land? Or lineage? Perhaps a piece of paper from the government? Once it's yours, can it be taken back?

I have to fill out a form that asks about my parents. Are they British nationals? If so, when did they become so? What's the number on the certificate? These are not unreasonable questions in themselves, but they reminded me with a jolt that the status of me and mine wasn't always assured.

A book is doing the rounds, Exodus: Immigration and Multiculturalism in the 21st Century by Paul Collier, the former World Bank economist. It says a bunch of things: that too much diversity loosens the ties that bind societies and that too much migration impoverishes source countries by robbing them of their best people. Some people, mainly on the right, love it. Others pretty much hate it because it seems a gloomy sort of manifesto and they think the analysis questionable. But one line stood out in the book and in the Daily Mail's love-bomb coverage. "The 2011 census revealed that the indigenous British had become a minority in their own capital."

"Indigenous" is interesting in this context. There is no such census category and Britons through birth or citizenship are still the majority in London. So it's white British. Then there is "their own capital". What does that mean, other than London has been wrested from them? I don't think it works like that. I've 50 years invested and other non-white people with more years on the clock might see me as a newbie. This Britain, don't we own it too?

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/jan/06/how-long-be-in-britain

It is certainly not surprising that "the right" would mainly like a book that disparages non-white immigration to Britain. That is true of conservative critics of immigration (largely non-white) to the US, as well.

Is considering your adopted country 'yours' a state of mind, "a piece of paper from the government", "can it be taken back"? Interesting questions.

2 replies

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How long do you have to be in Britain (or the US) before it's 'yours'? (Original Post) pampango Jan 2014 OP

Removal of citizenship obtained fraudulently (Deprivation) dipsydoodle Jan 2014 #1

The rich or wealthy and white are fleeing to South America (Brazil, Costa Rica etc.). Soon those kelliekat44 Jan 2014 #2

dipsydoodle

(42,239 posts)

1. Removal of citizenship obtained fraudulently (Deprivation)

Reply to pampango (Original post)

Mon Jan 6, 2014, 10:36 AM

Jan 2014

We may take away your British citizenship if we find that you obtained your registration or naturalisation by fraud, giving false information, or concealing facts that would have affected our decision. This is known as deprivation of citizenship.

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/britishcitizenship/withdrawingcitizenship/

The issuing, withdrawal or refusal of passports.

The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Theresa May): The British passport is a secure document issued in accordance with international standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organisation. The British passport achieves a very high standard of security to protect the identity of the individual, to enable the freedom of travel for British citizens and to contribute to public protection in the United Kingdom and overseas.

There is no entitlement to a passport and no statutory right to have access to a passport. The decision to issue, withdraw, or refuse a British passport is at the discretion of the Secretary of State for the Home Department (the Home Secretary) under the Royal Prerogative.

This Written Ministerial Statement updates previous statements made to Parliament from time to time on the exercise of the Royal Prerogative and sets out the circumstances under which a passport can be issued, withdrawn, or refused. It redefines the public interest criteria to refuse or withdraw a passport.

A decision to refuse or withdraw a passport must be necessary and proportionate. The decision to withdraw or refuse a passport and the reason for that decision will be conveyed to the applicant or passport holder. The disclosure of information used to determine such a decision will be subject to the individual circumstances of the case.

https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/the-issuing-withdrawal-or-refusal-of-passports

The significance of the passport revolves around the issue of actually getting back into the UK as opposed to leaving. I think this generally refers to those who have chosen to fight wars elsewhere.

kelliekat44

(7,759 posts)

2. The rich or wealthy and white are fleeing to South America (Brazil, Costa Rica etc.). Soon those

Reply to pampango (Original post)

Mon Jan 6, 2014, 10:52 AM

Jan 2014

places will become "theirs." It's the cycle of the affluent fleeing the growing numbers of those previously in servitude to them. However, there fewer places are becoming available to which to flee in comfortable numbers since much of the world, including South America is in constant unrest because of the growing gap between the haves and the have-nots. In the end it's "no justice; no peace,"

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