Under pressure from British activist groups and the opposition Labour Party, the British Home Office on March 4 made public an immigration rule change document that lifted the ban on Hong Kong people settling in Britain receiving government public funds. The move comes after concerned groups worried that some of the newly arrived Hong Kong immigrants could be at risk of falling into poverty.
According to political news site Politico, the British Home Office said in a document made public on Thursday that holders of British National (Overseas) Passport BNO residence visas who are “at risk of falling into poverty” (such as emergency distress, and those who are still temporarily unable to cope with raising young children) will be able to apply for public funding grants on a case-by-case basis. In this regard, Hong Kong people wishing to apply must provide evidence of their financial situation to the UK Home Office or prove that they have children and a very low income.
It is reported that there are currently 350,000 people in Hong Kong who hold valid BNO passports, 2.5 million eligible applicants for BNO, and another 2.5 million who are their relatives, for a total of 5.4 million people who can immigrate to the UK under the BNO scheme. The British government previously estimated that the first five years there will be 300,000 people using the program to immigrate to the United Kingdom.
According to the report, the founder of Hong Kong people’s group “British Hong Kong Overseas Chinese Association” (HKB), Cheng Man Kit, welcomed the news. Last month, the group wrote to the Home Office, calling on it to exercise discretion when applying for public funding for BNO visa holders and to help those who really need support. In addition, three Labour shadow ministers have urged the Conservative government to change its policy accordingly, warning that the BNO visa route will only serve the wealthy in Hong Kong unless economic barriers are reduced.
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