Advertisement

Citizenship ceremonies could be hosted by Queen in post-Brexit plan to celebrate Britishness

File photo dated 03/03/20 of Queen Elizabeth II wearing gloves as she awards the CBE to Miss Anne Craig, known professionally as actress Wendy Craig, during an investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in London. The Queen's upcoming visits to Cheshire and Camden have been postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic, Buckingham Palace has announced. PA Photo. Issue date: Friday March 13, 2020. See PA story ROYAL Queen. Photo credit should read: Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire - Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire

Citizenship ceremonies could be hosted by the Queen in Buckingham Palace under plans to celebrate Britishness after Brexit.

An inquiry by MPs and other public figures has recommended a major shake-up of British citizenship policy to transform the ceremonies into a celebration of British heritage and modern culture that would no longer be hidden away in “dark and gloomy” council buildings.

High-profile ceremonies hosted by the Queen and the Prime Minister would be held each year at Buckingham Palace and Edinburgh Castle to award citizenship to brave or notable individuals such as key workers during the pandemic in recognition of their outstanding contribution to British life.

These would be the “pinnacle” in a revamp of the ceremonies nationwide where new citizens would receive their passports at historic venues such as the Palace of Westminster, football grounds like Old Trafford, castles and other historic buildings.

The number of guests a new citizen could bring would be increased from two to five, local schools, community groups and charities would be invited to welcome citizens to “civil society” and children securing citizenship could also have their own ceremonies.

The plans have been drawn up by an inquiry panel chaired by Conservative MP Alberto Costa and will be considered by Boris Johnson, a supporter of citizenship ceremonies when London mayor, and Priti Patel, the Home Secretary.

Then London Mayor Boris Johnson presents a certificate of citizenship at City Hall, London, 2009 - CARL DE SOUZA/AFP
Then London Mayor Boris Johnson presents a certificate of citizenship at City Hall, London, 2009 - CARL DE SOUZA/AFP

Mr Costa said the shake-up aimed to promote modern Britishness and global Britain. “We want to beef up the ceremonies by having them at attractive locations that mean something to the new citizens,” he told The Telegraph.

“If they are football fans, then it could be Old Trafford. It would be something that represents British heritage and contemporary culture rather than a state municipal building that doesn’t really give that welcoming atmosphere.”

They would be allied to a shake-up of the test and citizenship handbook which currently has a picture of the Queen buried on page 121, rather than up front as even the Canadians have. “The Queen is head of state and should be right up there at the front,” he said.

People aspiring to be citizens could study British culture over ten sessions alongside sixth formers with the citizenship test transformed from a “tick box” examination of basic knowledge that even naturalised Britons can find difficult.

Instead, it would be focused on understanding what it means to be British, such as what impact does the rule of law have on individual citizens and what volunteering entails.

The report, which is published on Thursday by think tank British Future, warned citizenship was “prohibitively expensive” at £1,330 per adult and £80 for the ceremony, the highest price in the western world and four times the processing cost for the Home Office.

For the same price, a person could become a citizen of Australia (£155), Canada (£373), New Zealand (£243) and the United States (£590).

The Inquiry recommended a review of the costs and that citizenship by registration should be made free, which benefits applicants that mostly comprise children.

It said nationality law should be amended to allow children born in the UK to be British citizens automatically, restoring a policy that applied before 1983.