Case No. UKUT-00043(IAC)

30. The rights and benefits of British citizenship are in large measure a matter of statute. Whether or not a constitutional right (a point on which Lord Hoffman (at [43]) and Lord Mance [at [151] differed in R (Bancoult) v Foreign Secretary (No 2 )), the right of abode is clearly one of the most important components of British citizenship. However, as Lord Hope observed in ZH (Tanzania ) at [41], “there is much more to British citizenship than the status it gives to the children in immigration law … [i]t carries with it a host of other benefits and advantages … [which] ought never to be left out of account." In the same case, Lady Hale emphasised at [32] that "the fact of belonging to a country fundamentally affects the manner of exercise of a child's family and private life, during childhood and well beyond." 31. In R (on the application of Johnson) (Appellant) v SSHD (Respondent ) [2016] UKSC 56, Lady Hale observed at [2] that “[t]here are many benefits to being a British citizen, among them the right to vote, the right to live and to work here without needing permission to do so, and everything that comes along with those rights”. In Rights and Responsibilities: developing our constitutional framework , a publication of the Ministry of Justice dated March 2009, it is stated that: “Living in the UK, we enjoy a range of entitlements which go beyond the civil and political rights in the European Convention and sit – as part of our well-established welfare state – firmly in the sphere of social and economic rights. Including provisions which point to key aspects of our welfare state, such as the National Health Service and our rights and responsibilities as patients and staff, could help to paint a fuller picture of the rights and responsibilities we share as members of UK society.” 32. Insofar as the position of British citizen children is concerned, the Home Office publication of July 2019, MN1 Registration as a British citizen – A guide about the registration of children under 18 , states at p.5 that: “Becoming a British citizen is a significant life event. Apart from allowing a child to apply for a British citizen passport, British citizenship gives them the opportunity to participate more fully in the life of their local community as they grow up.” 33. Whilst UK law also accords a number of rights and benefits to persons who are not British citizens (e.g. those who have settled status), they are fewer than those enjoyed by British citizens, As noted by Jay J in The Project for the Registration of Children As British Citizens & Ors, R (On the Application Of) v Secretary of State for the Home Departmen t [2019] EWHC 3536 (Admin) at [16]: “The advantages of British citizenship cannot be considered in abstract. The position of British citizens falls to be contrasted with those who have limited or indefinite leave to remain (there are also important practical differences between these species of leave), into which categories the majority but not all of the children entitled to be registered will no doubt fall. A person with leave to remain as opposed to the right of abode cannot enter and/or remain in the UK without let or hindrance: by definition, she requires leave, and this permission may require examination by immigration officers at a port of entry or at Lunar House. The status may lapse; it may be cancelled; and individuals holding such leave are liable to be deported on conducive grounds under s.3(5)(a) of the Immigration Act 1971.”