Source · Select Committees · Human Rights (Joint Committee)
Recommendation 11
11
Accepted
The UK uses deprivation of citizenship orders more than almost any country in the world.
Conclusion
The UK uses deprivation of citizenship orders more than almost any country in the world. At the same time that it is important for the Government to be able to take steps such as citizenship stripping in the interests of public safety, there is a serious lack of transparency and oversight when it comes to the use of this power. (Conclusion, Paragraph 76)
Government Response Summary
The government refutes the claim of a serious lack of transparency and oversight by detailing its existing publications of data on citizenship deprivations and highlighting the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration's established remit and past independent reviews of the power.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
20. There is sufficient oversight and transparency of the use of the deprivation power. The Government publishes data in relation to deprivation of British citizenship on conducive grounds (section 40(2) of the BNA 1981) in publications of the Counter-terrorism disruptive powers report. Eight reports have been published by the Government to date providing the number of deprivations of citizenship orders made up until the end of 2023. 21. There is also sufficient independent oversight. The Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration (ICIBI) has the remit to review the power. Sections 48–56 of the UK Borders Act 2007 (as amended) provide the legislative framework for the inspection of the efficiency and effectiveness of the performance of functions relating to immigration, asylum, nationality, and customs by the Home Secretary and by any person exercising such functions on her behalf. The ICIBI has conducted independent reviews of the deprivation power, with reports published in 2018 and 2024.