Britain grants citizenship to 1 mn foreign nationals

London, May 24 (UNI) Britain has granted citizenship to nearly one million foreign nationals since the Labour party came to power in 1997.

According to latest official figures, 161,000 people obtained a British passport last year, a 15 per cent increase from 2004. About 214,000 more applications are now being processed .

About half of the people who obtained the British citizenship last year were those who had stayed in the country for five years or more and around 20 per cent became British nationals through marriage.

The remaining were mainly dependant children.

The Home Office said the 64 per cent increase in applications during the last year was mainly due to people submitting their papers before the introduction of the new "Britishness" test last November.

The rate of overseas settlement in Britain is now the highest ever and is four times greater than in the mid-1990s, reflecting unprecedented levels of immigration.

The Government has said there is no limit to the number of people who can come to this country but ministers have put in place a new points-based work permit system which is designed to restrict long-term settlement to highly-qualified immigrants.

Immigration Minister Liam Byrne defended the rise and said, ''British citizenship should be recognised and celebrated as a crucial stage in integration into British life.'' However, Sir Andrew Green, chairman of Migrationwatch UK said, ''Grants of citizenship have quadrupled under the present Government. This is a direct result of their no limits immigration policy. Immigration on this scale is changing the nature of our society without public consent. It is no longer acceptable.'' The figures showed 30 per cent of the new citizens were born in Africa and 19 per cent were from the Indian sub-continent. The countries with the largest number were India (14,190), Pakistan (12,615), Serbia and Montenegro (9,800) and Somalia (8,305).

People born in developed countries such as Australasia, America and the EU states were less likely to become British citizens than those born in the Third World. More than half of those granted citizenship were under 34, the report added.

UNI XC AK HT1507