Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Bill [HL]

My Lords, the practical difficulties extend a little beyond my original answer. The amendment calls, of course, for the power to cancel a passport if a person fails to tell us that he has another passport. It is not clear how we could establish that a person holds a different passport if he does not disclose that information. Further, as failure to disclose that you hold a passport of a different nationality is not grounds for the refusal of a passport in the first place, there does not appear to be anything to prevent the person in question simply applying for a new passport after the existing one is withdrawn and cancelled. This would appear severely to undermine the effectiveness of the amendment. These are the practical problems associated with the amendment, although we all identify with the wish behind it and the noble Lord’s intention of making our borders safer. At this stage, we remain unconvinced that it is practical to put the proposal into effect.