Citizenship ceremony plan had potential to ‘damage community relations in NI’

Government plans to introduce ceremonies for people wanting to become UK citizens had the potential to “damage community and race relations in Northern Ireland”, a Stormont official warned in 2003.

The official said the proposal to have “low-key” citizenship ceremonies at Hillsborough, Co Down, was a “tacit admission” of this and instead suggested allowing a “block exemption” from compulsory attendance in the region.

Tony Blair’s Labour government introduced the ceremonies for those seeking UK citizenship, with the first ceremonies taking place in 2004, involving participants singing the national anthem and swearing allegiance to Queen Elizabeth II.

Devolved power sharing institutions in Northern Ireland were suspended at the time.

Newly declassified files show Ken Fraser, a civil servant at the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister (OFMDFM), sent an internal email to official Linda Devlin setting out his “worries” about the plan.

In the email, he said the exclusion of Irish from a list of languages that applicants would be required to have some knowledge of was “puzzling” and seemed “difficult to justify”.

“It seems unlikely, however, that the same could be said of Northern Ireland.

“UK national symbols and national anthem – which are proposed as an integral part of the ceremony – are associated primarily, if not exclusively with the Unionist community, as is much of the language proposed for the ceremony.

“The proposed use of the Union flag and national anthem would appear to be at odds with the sustained attempt – by Government and others – to remove emblems from the political arena within NI.”

Mr Fraser said the proposed ceremonies were a “new, and public, institution”.

He added: “It is difficult to see how the ceremony itself (which is intended to be compulsory) and the use of symbols and emblems as proposed in the consultation document will promote mutual respect.

“I understand, however….that the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) has agreed that such ceremonies will only occur in Hillsborough and have agreed that Registrars from England will perform the task.

“This de facto acknowledgement that circumstances are different in Northern Ireland – and not just in respect of local government structures – is to be welcomed.

“NIO’s wish to keep citizenship ceremonies in NI low-key is understandable, given the segregated nature of NI society, but the arrangements that they propose for NI seem to be entirely at odds with the proposals which are explicitly aimed at making the citizenship ceremony a ‘community occasion’.”

Mr Fraser said a proposed pledge in the ceremony to give loyalty to the UK “would not be acceptable to a significant proportion of the current ‘citizens’ of Northern Ireland”.

“The proposals in the consultation document have the potential to damage community and race relations in NI.

“It is difficult to see the NIO’s/Home Office’s agreement that ceremonies will only occur in Hillsborough and that Registrars from England will perform the task as amounting to anything other than a tacit acknowledgement of this.”

Mr Fraser said the consultation indicated people could be exempt from the ceremony in “exceptional circumstances”.

He added: “It might be better all round if there was acknowledgement that exceptional circumstances prevail in Northern Ireland and to allow a block exemption from compulsory attendance.”

In response, Ms Devlin said the main thrust of the consultation document was to encourage ideas and suggestions how the ceremonies could be tailored to suit local circumstances and said she would pass on his remarks to the NIO and Home Office.