Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1968

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
Find sources: "Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1968" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (August 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

|

United Kingdom legislation

Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1968[1]Act of Parliament

Parliament of the United Kingdom

Long title| An Act to amend sections 1 and 2 of the Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1962, and Schedule 1 to that Act, and to make further provision as to Commonwealth citizens landing in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man; and for purposes connected with the matters aforesaid
Citation| 1968 c. 9
Territorial extent | United Kingdom
Dates
Royal assent| 1 March 1968
Other legislation
Repealed by| Immigration Act 1971
Relates to| Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1962

Status: Repealed

Text of statute as originally enacted

The Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1968[1] (c. 9) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

## The Act

[edit]

The Act amended the Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1962 (that had stripped most citizens of Commonwealth countries of the rights of entry, abode and employment in the United Kingdom), further reducing rights of citizens of the Commonwealth of Nations countries (as of 2024, comprising approximately 2.5 billion people[2]) to migrate to the UK. More importantly, it extended the restrictions of the earlier act to apply to British citizens (termed Citizens of the United Kingdom and Colonies) so that the Act restricted the future right of entry into that part of the territory of the British Realm that lay within the British Isles (ie., the United Kingdom), previously enjoyed by all Citizens of the United Kingdom and Colonies, to those born there or who had at least one parent or grandparent born there.[3]

## Impact

[edit]

It was introduced amid concerns that up to 200,000 Kenyan Asians, fleeing that country's "Africanization" policy, would take up their right to reside in the UK (ethnic-Indians in British African colonies had been permitted to retain British citizenship to avoid them becoming stateless should they be denied the citizenship of their newly-independent nations - newly independent Uganda would also expel ethnic-Indians). The bill went through parliament in three days, supported by the leadership of both the governing Labour and main opposition Conservative parties, though opposed by some Labour backbenchers, a few Conservatives such as Iain Macleod and Michael Heseltine, and the small parliamentary Liberal Party.[4][5]

## Aftermath

[edit]

In the wake of these subsequent reforms of the law on immigration from the Commonwealth to Britain, it became clear that the view of UK Government about immigration was changing. As the states in the British Commonwealth achieved independence, and the idea of a British Empire ceased to be a reality, the Government decided that a more reserved, conservative approach to immigration was necessary. Hundreds of thousands of African, Asian, and Caribbean expectant immigrants arrived by other methods, including through Europe and by methods that did not involve them having immigration visas. The 1968 Act was superseded by the Immigration Act 1971.

When cabinet papers were released under the 30-year rule, they showed that the legislation was intentionally aimed at "coloured immigrants", and that the cabinet had received legal advice that the bill would breach international law. Home Secretary James Callaghan had made the proposal for emergency legislation at a special cabinet committee on 13 February 1968. The minutes noted the bill "might be presented as the government giving way to racial prejudice".[6]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b Short title as conferred by s. 7 of the Act
2. ^ "About us". Commonwealth. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
3. ^ Warwick, Professor (of Political Science) John (24 September 2007). "Race and the development of Immigration policy during the 20th century". Race and the development of Immigration policy during the 20th century. Professor John Warwick. Archived from the original on 28 January 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
4. ^ Mark Lattimer (22 January 1999). "When Labour played the racist card". New Statesman. Retrieved 1 March 2012.
5. ^ Hansen, R. (1999). The Kenyan Asians, British Politics, and the Commonwealth Immigrants Act, 1968. The Historical Journal, 42(3), 809-834
6. ^ Lattimer, Mark (22 January 1999). "When Labour played the racist card". New Statesman. Retrieved 2 December 2023.

* Category:Commonwealth immigration throughout the 20th century; bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides

## Further reading

[edit]

* Collier, J.G. “THE COMMONWEALTH IMMIGRANTS ACT 1968 — A BRITISH OPINION.” Verfassung und Recht in Übersee 2, no. 4 (1969), 457–468.
* Consterdine, Erica, Labour’s Immigration Policy, 1st ed. 2018 (Cham: Springer International Publishing AG, 2017)
* Hansen, Randall. “The Kenyan Asians, British Politics, and the Commonwealth Immigrants Act, 1968.” The Historical Journal, vol. 42, no. 3 (1999), 809–834.
* Hansen, Randall, Citizenship and Immigration in Post-war Britain: The Institutional Origins of a Multicultural Nation (Oxford University Press, 2000)
* Spencer, Ian. British Immigration Policy Since 1939: The Making of Multi Racial Britain (London, 1997).

* v
* t
* e

UK legislation

Pre-parliamentary legislation|

* List of English statutes
* Charter of Liberties
* Magna Carta

Acts of parliaments of states preceding
the Kingdom of Great Britain|

| Parliament of England|

* 1225–1267
* 1275–1307
* 1308–1325
* Temp. incert.
* 1327–1376
* 1377–1397
* 1399–1411
* 1413–1421
* 1422–1460
* 1461
* 1463
* 1464
* 1467
* 1468
* 1472
* 1474
* 1477
* 1482
* 1483
* 1485
* 1487
* 1488
* 1491
* 1495
* 1496
* 1503
* 1509
* 1511
* 1512
* 1513
* 1514
* 1515
* 1523
* 1529
* 1530
* 1531
* 1532
* 1533
* 1534
* 1535
* 1536
* 1539
* 1540
* 1541
* 1542
* 1543
* 1545
* 1546
* 1547
* 1548
* 1549
* 1551
* 1553
* 1554
* 1555
* 1557
* 1558
* 1562
* 1566
* 1571
* 1572
* 1575
* 1580
* 1584
* 1586
* 1588
* 1592
* 1597
* 1601
* 1603
* 1605
* 1606
* 1609
* 1620
* 1623
* 1625
* 1627
* Petition of Right
* 1640
* Interregnum (1642–1660)
* 1660
* 1661
* 1662
* 1663
* 1664
* 1665
* 1666
* 1667
* 1670
* 1672
* 1675
* 1677
* 1678
* 1679
* Habeas Corpus Act
* 1680
* 1685
* 1688
* 1689
* Bill of Rights
* 1690
* 1691
* 1692
* 1693
* 1694
* 1695
* 1696
* 1697
* 1698
* 1700
* 1701
* 1702
* 1703
* 1704
* 1705
* 1706

|

Parliament of Scotland|

* 1424–1438
* 1440–1457
* 1466–1478
* 1481–1496
* 1503–1515
* 1522–1535
* 1540–1558
* 1560–1579
* 1581–1597
* 1600–1646
* 1661–1673
* 1681–1698
* 1700–1707

Acts of Parliament of the
Kingdom of Great Britain|

* 1707
* 1708
* 1709
* 1710
* 1711
* 1712
* 1713
* 1714
* 1715–1719
* 1720
* 1721
* 1722
* 1723
* 1724
* 1725–1729
* 1730
* 1731
* 1732
* 1733
* 1734
* 1735–1739
* 1740
* 1741
* 1742
* 1743
* 1744
* 1745
* 1746
* 1747
* 1748
* 1749
* 1750
* 1751
* 1753
* 1754
* 1755
* 1756
* 1757
* 1758
* 1759
* 1760
* 1761
* 1762
* 1763
* 1764
* 1765
* 1766
* 1767
* 1768
* 1769
* 1770
* 1771
* 1772
* 1773
* 1774
* 1775
* 1776
* 1777
* 1778
* 1779
* 1780
* 1781
* 1782
* 1783
* 1784
* 1785
* 1786
* 1787
* 1788
* 1789
* 1790
* 1791
* 1792
* 1793
* 1794
* 1795
* 1796
* 1797
* 1798
* 1799
* 1800

Acts of the Parliament of Ireland|

* to 1690
* 1691–1700
* 1701–1750
* 1751–1760
* 1761–1770
* 1771–1780
* 1781–1790
* 1791–1800

Acts of Parliament of the United Kingdom of
Great Britain and Ireland and the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland|

* 1801
* 1802
* 1803
* 1804
* 1805
* 1806
* 1807
* 1808
* 1809
* 1810
* 1811
* 1812
* 1813
* 1814
* 1815
* 1816
* 1817
* 1818
* 1819
* 1820
* 1821
* 1822
* 1823
* 1824
* 1825
* 1826
* 1827
* 1828
* 1829
* 1830
* 1831
* 1832
* 1833
* 1834
* 1835
* 1836
* 1837
* 1838
* 1839
* 1840
* 1841
* 1842
* 1843
* 1844
* 1845
* 1846
* 1847
* 1848
* 1849
* 1850
* 1851
* 1852
* 1853
* 1854
* 1855
* 1856
* 1857
* 1858
* 1859
* 1860
* 1861
* 1862
* 1863
* 1864
* 1865
* 1866
* 1867
* 1868
* 1869
* 1870
* 1871
* 1872
* 1873
* 1874
* 1875
* 1876
* 1877
* 1878
* 1879
* 1880
* 1881
* 1882
* 1883
* 1884
* 1885
* 1886
* 1887
* 1888
* 1889
* 1890
* 1891
* 1892
* 1893
* 1894
* 1895
* 1896
* 1897
* 1898
* 1899

* 1900
* 1901
* 1902
* 1903
* 1904
* 1905
* 1906
* 1907
* 1908
* 1909
* 1910
* 1911
* 1912
* 1913
* 1914
* 1915
* 1916
* 1917
* 1918
* 1919
* 1920
* 1921
* 1922
* 1923
* 1924
* 1925
* 1926
* 1927
* 1928
* 1929
* 1930
* 1931
* 1932
* 1933
* 1934
* 1935
* 1936
* 1937
* 1938
* 1939
* 1940
* 1941
* 1942
* 1943
* 1944
* 1945
* 1946
* 1947
* 1948
* 1949
* 1950
* 1951
* 1952
* 1953
* 1954
* 1955
* 1956
* 1957
* 1958
* 1959
* 1960
* 1961
* 1962
* 1963
* 1964
* 1965
* 1966
* 1967
* 1968
* 1969
* 1970
* 1971
* 1972
* 1973
* 1974
* 1975
* 1976
* 1977
* 1978
* 1979
* 1980
* 1981
* 1982
* 1983
* 1984
* 1985
* 1986
* 1987
* 1988
* 1989
* 1990
* 1991
* 1992
* 1993
* 1994
* 1995
* 1996
* 1997
* 1998
* 1999

* 2000
* 2001
* 2002
* 2003
* 2004
* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009
* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019
* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024

* Halsbury's Statutes
* Legislation.gov.uk
* Short titles

relating to the European Union (formerly European Communities)|

* 1972 to date

Church of England measures|

* List
* Church of England Assembly (Powers) Act 1919

Legislation of devolved institutions|

| Parliament of Northern Ireland|

* List

|

Northern Ireland Assembly (1973)|

* List

Scottish Parliament|

* 1999
* 2000
* 2001
* 2002
* 2003
* 2004
* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009
* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019
* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2023
* 2024

Senedd Cymru|

* 2008
* 2009
* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019
* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2023
* 2024

Northern Ireland Assembly|

* 2000
* 2001
* 2002
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009
* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2023
* 2024

Secondary legislation|

* United Kingdom statutory instruments
* Order in Council
* List of Privy Council orders
* for Northern Ireland
* List
* Scottish statutory instruments
* Acts of Sederunt
* Acts of Adjournal
* Church of England instruments
* Welsh statutory instruments

* v
* t
* e

Commonwealth citizenship

Commonwealth of Nations|

* Commonwealth citizen
* Commonwealth diaspora

Nationality laws|

* Antigua & Barbuda
* Australia
* The Bahamas
* Bangladesh
* Barbados
* Belize
* Botswana
* Brunei
* Cameroon
* Canada
* Cyprus
* Dominica
* Eswatini
* Fiji
* Gabon
* The Gambia
* Ghana
* Grenada
* Guyana
* India
* Jamaica
* Kenya
* Kiribati
* Lesotho
* Malawi
* Malaysia
* Maldives
* Malta
* Mauritius
* Mozambique
* Namibia
* Nauru
* New Zealand
* Nigeria
* Pakistan
* Papua New Guinea
* Rwanda
* Saint Kitts and Nevis
* Saint Lucia
* Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
* Samoa
* Seychelles
* Sierra Leone
* Singapore
* Solomon Islands
* South Africa
* Sri Lanka
* Tanzania
* Togo
* Tonga
* Trinidad and Tobago
* Tuvalu
* Uganda
* United Kingdom
* Vanuatu
* Zambia
* Zimbabwe

Rights, issues, and visas|

* Belonger status
* British nationality law and Hong Kong
* British nationality law and the Republic of Ireland
* British Overseas Territories citizen
* Commonwealth citizen
* Indefinite leave to remain
* Irish nationality law
* Permanent resident (Australia)
* Permanent resident (Canada)
* UK Ancestry Entry Clearance
* UK right of abode
* Windrush scandal

Acts of Parliament|

* British Nationality Act 1981
* British Nationality (Falkland Islands) Act 1983
* British Overseas Territories Act 2002
* Canadian Citizenship Act 1946
* Ireland Act 1949

Authority control databases: People |

* UK Parliament

|

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template